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競漕

by Masao Kume

A literature student is drafted into the university rowing crew.

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Original language: JapaneseLevel: Intermediate3,351 characters · ≈ 13 minSource: 青空文库

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Sample: three-line reading

Each word has its meaning in this sentence underneath, and each sentence has a full translation. Read the original and glance down only when you need to.

一one
One
毎年every year春季にin spring開かれるis held大学のthe university's競漕会がrowing race (subject)もうalready一月とonly a month差し迫ったwas drawing near時にat the time whenなってcame about and文科のof the liberal arts department短艇部boat club選手にamong the rowers急なsudden欠員がvacancy (subject)生じたarose
When the university's yearly spring boat race was only a month away, a sudden empty place appeared among the rowers of the liberal arts school's boat club.
五番をthe fifth seat (as the object)漕いでいたwas rowing浅沼がAsanuma (subject)他の選手とwith another rower衝突してcollided and止めてしまったended up stoppingのであるit was because (explanatory)
Asanuma, who rowed in the fifth seat, had fought with another rower and stopped.
艇長の責任the responsibility of boat captainがあるhad / there was窪田はas for Kubota困ったwas in trouble
Kubota, the boat captain, was in trouble.

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About the book

This passage follows a university rowing team short one oarsman before a race, as captain Kubota searches for a replacement and settles on Kuno, who is buried in a play he is writing. The opening reads briskly, full of the harried but earnest atmosphere of student club life.

Cultural notes (selection)

Background a translation can’t carry: social roles, history and allusions. While reading, tap “Note” at the end of a sentence to see them all.

大学の競漕会 History

Rowing (regatta racing) is a campus sport that entered Japan in the Meiji era. Universities and faculties often held intercollegiate competitions in spring; the contest between the literature, agriculture, law, engineering and medicine faculties described in the text is an inter-faculty competition within the university.

合宿生活 Customs

A collective training camp customarily practised by Japanese student sports clubs and literary societies: before a competition or during a creative period, members live and eat together at an inn or dormitory for intensive, closed-door practice.

河童が川流れをする Allusion

A twist on the proverb 「河童の川流れ」—even a kappa, so skilled in water, can be swept away by the current, meaning even an expert can slip up. Tsushima calls Kubota 「隅田川の河童」 (an old hand with superb swimming skills), and Kuno deliberately turns the proverb back at him, a witticism he thinks is clever.

About the author

Masao Kume (23 November 1891 – 1 March 1952) was a Japanese popular playwright, novelist, and haiku poet under the pen-name Santei, active during the late Taishō and early Shōwa periods. His wife and the wife of Nagai Tatsuo were sisters, making them brothers-in-law.

How the glosses are made

Word glosses and sentence translations are generated in context by AI models (DeepSeek and Zhipu GLM), and every word is checked to have a gloss. AI can make mistakes; you can report problems from the book page.

FAQ

Is this the original text?

Yes. The library holds the opening section of the public-domain original, taken from 青空文库.

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What level is it?

This one is marked “Intermediate”. Every word is glossed, so you can keep reading even with a small vocabulary.

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English and Chinese glosses are prepared in advance; signed-in readers can generate other languages.

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