4.5. TRANSLATING PREPOSITIONS 217
4.5.3 The conceptual nouns list
- Above, up, upon, on
The kanji for this word already hints at the fact that this noun signifies a
conceptual location ’above’ something. It does not literally mean any of the
words ”above”, ”on”, ”up”, ”over” or the likes, but simply implies them
all, given a specific context. For instance:
”There is a beautiful flower arrangement on the table.”Since flower arrangements typically rest on a surface, in this case
means ”on”. However, if we look at the following sentence, we see a dif-
ferent context, and a different meaning:
”There’s a window above the table.”Since windows don’t typically rest on surfaces but are part of walls,
can only be interpreted as meaning ”above” in this context.
- Below, beneath, under, underneath
In the same way that means the conceptual location above something,
means a conceptual location below something. Again, context dictates
what preposition is best used in the translation:
”There’s a cat underneath the table.””There are drawers under the table.”In the first sentence, refers to well under the table, on the floor,
while in the second sentence means on the underside of the table itself.