精々 (JLPT N2)

À propos de 精々

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精々(せいぜい) 'at the limit' is an adverb used to convey that something is 'at the most (A)', or 'at best (A)'. This just indicates that the point that (A) has reached cannot be progressed beyond, due to having already reached some physical or metaphorical barrier. This can also often come across as 'no more than (A)', especially in cases where no actual barrier exists, but the speaker cannot imagine that anything higher (or lower) than (A) is possible.

As 精々(せいぜい) is an adverb, it often appears at the beginning of sentence, or at the beginning of the second clause of a sentence, before the thing that is thought to be at its maximum is described.

Fun-fact

精々(せいぜい) is said to have come from the old-fashioned word 精誠(せいせい), which meant 'to completely exhaust all of one's good faith'. In modern times, 精々(せいぜい) itself has kept this meaning of 'completely exhausting (A)'. However, this is no longer used in reference to 'good faith', but rather exhausting all of one's 'power', 'mental capacity', or 'power of assumption' in relation to (A).

Exemples

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「３８(さんじゅうはっ)歳(さい)だって？精々(せいぜい)３０(さんじゅう)くらいなものだと思(おも)っていたよ。」

'38 years old you say? I thought he was around 30 at most!'

「電車(でんしゃ)が来(こ)ないうちに観光(かんこう)出来(でき)るのは精々(せいぜい)４(よ)時間(じかん)ぐらい。」

'Before the train comes, we can do sightseeing for four hours at most.'

証人(しょうにん)：「加害(かがい)者(しゃ)はたぶん精々(せいぜい)３０(さんじゅっ)歳(さい)ぐらいでしょ。」

Witness: 'The assailant is about 30 years old at most.'

凄(すご)く怒(おこ)ったファン：「ダーデンは精々(せいぜい)二流(にりゅう)のコーチだぞ！子供(こども)でさえもっと上手(うま)くコーチングできるぞ!」

Extremely angry fan: 'Durden is a second-rate coach at best! Even a child can coach better than him!'

「この車(くるま)を買(か)うのに彼(かれ)が支払(しはら)ったのは精々(せいぜい)３万(さんまん)ドルだと思(おも)う。」

'I think that in order to buy that car he spent 30 grand at most.'

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