# 空気を読む



## almostfreebird

For example：

安部首相は時代の空気を読めなかった。

Literal translation is "(the late) prime minister Shinzoh Abe couldn’t read the air of the times."   

Would that work at all?


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## Flaminius

Hello *almostfreebird*,

I am sure you know that 空気を読む has a very wide range of nuances.  I think there is no single best English translation for this idiom.  Given that we are to deal with your example sentence in this thread, I find it impossible to translate it without some context to determine what this compound 時代の空気 means.

While I wait for you or anyone to clue me in, please note that "late someone" means that the referred person is dead.


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## almostfreebird

OK, let me put this way：

Ex-prime minister Shinzoh Abe didnt understand what people in general
were hoping, or worrying about. As a result he lost popularity and 
credit. He was cornered and kind of forced to resign.
That is ”安部首相は時代の空気を読めなかった”　,　whose literal translation is
"he couldn’t read the air of the times."

What I’m wondering is whether the literal translation works, if at all.


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## Captain Haddock

The literal translation makes no sense in English.

Perhaps a similar phrase would work, however: "He didn't know which way the wind was blowing."


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## almostfreebird

Captain Haddock said:


> The literal translation makes no sense in English.
> 
> Perhaps a similar phrase would work, however: "He didn't know which way the wind was blowing."



Hi, thank you very much for the answer.

One more question, do you imagine something from the sentence "he couldn’t read the air of the times."


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## Captain Haddock

No, you can't "read air" in English no matter how hard you try.


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## samanthalee

We can say "he isn't in tune with the pulse of the public".


We can't "read the air", but we can "feel the pulse"


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## almostfreebird

Then can you say "he couldn’t feel the air of the times."?
Does that make sense in that context?:

<<Ex-prime minister Shinzoh Abe didnt understand what people in general
were hoping, or worrying about. As a result he lost popularity and
credit. He was cornered and kind of forced to resign.
That is he couldn’t *feel the air of the times*.>>

It seems to me that sounds right.

What about "he couldn't *feel the pulse of the times*"? 

I'm sure I know "the times" don't have the pulse. Just wondering.
By the way there's a Japanese word "時代の鼓動" which means "the pulse of the times".


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## samanthalee

"Feel the air" doesn't work.
"Feel the pulse of the times" sounds awkward. Maybe "in tune with the pulse of the times" may work; but I'm not sure.

There's a Mandarin phrase "時代的脈搏" too, so I'm rather afraid that my opinion is coloured by my knowledge of Mandarin. You'll need another native English speaker confirm my suggestion.


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## Captain Haddock

almostfreebird said:


> Then can you say "he couldn’t feel the air of the times."?



No.


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## Hiro Sasaki

Captain Haddock said:


> No.


 

He could not read the trends of the times/ the current trends.

Hiro Sasaki


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## Flaminius

Echoing our good captain's comment;

空気 has come to be used to mean emotions, assumptions and expectations shared within a given social relationship.  I checked several English dictionaries including my old faithful _The Concise Oxford English Dictionary_ but none mentions a similar use of the English _air_.


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## Uebersetzer

Just to clean the air a little, recently the expression "KY"(空気を読まない） has been popular among young people. I'm also said to be someone who 空気を読まへん（読めへん？？？）

ほな


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## Hiro Sasaki

In Osakan dialect,

空気をよまへん　means : " xxxx does not/do not read the air. or will not read the air.


空気が　読めへん　means "xxxx can not read the air ".

Now I have realized myself that our dialect is very difficult for people from other regions and other countries.

Hiro Sasaki


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## almostfreebird

So anyway,


空気を（が）読めない人（kûki ga(o) yomenai hito） is:

#1  someone who says or does something out of tune with the atmosphere of the place.

#2  someone who is simply slow  to notice things.


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## Flaminius

Hello *almostfreebird*,

I haven't realised the expression could mean your sense #2.  Could you provide an example sentence?


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## Hiro Sasaki

almostfreebird said:


> So anyway,
> 
> 
> 空気を（が）読めない人（kûki ga(o) yomenai hito） is:
> 
> #1 someone who says or does something out of tune with the atmosphere of the place.
> 
> #2 someone who is simply slow to notice things.


 
That's why I said that it is difficult  for people from other regions to understand Osakaben's exprerssions.

Hiro Sasaki


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## almostfreebird

#2 is a derogatory interpretation of (空気を（が）読めない人), and it is not the authorised definition, just my opinion, just like the Urban Dictionary.


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## Flaminius

Nothing needs to be authorised in a discussion about use, *bird*.  (Unless, of course, you are a poet with poetic licence.  )

I admit that I am slow to notice things.  The expression 空気を読めない人 seems to be developing too fast for me to discuss with any surety.  I am wondering, therefore, if you could provide an example of sense #2, distinct enough from #1.


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## almostfreebird

Sometimes you might say 空気が読めない人ね humorously, and sometimes you might say that sarcastically.
When you hear some politician say stupid things out of tune with the public, you might want to say "あの馬鹿(That idiot)”, but wouldn't say the swearing in public, instead you might say 空気が読めない人ね meaning あの馬鹿(That idiot) who doesn't notice other peoples' feeling, so they sometimes can be interchangable in my opinion. That's why I added #2. I don't know about the examples.


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