# I can't answer to you this question



## Pacerier

Hi all, the translation for "I can't answer this question" is "この質問に答えられない"

I was wondering how should we translate the sentence: "I can't answer you this question" ?

I was thinking along the lines of "きみにこの質問を答えられない" but 答える is listed as an intransitive verb..


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## Xhris

How about きみ (*or あなた if you want to be more formal) の質問に答えられない？ 

Alternatively, if you want more emphasis on 質問, you could say きみのこの質問に答えられない。

By the by, 質問を答えられない is incorrect because 答えられない is indeed an intransitive verb and as such doesn't take the を particle.


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## Pacerier

Btw can we do this: きみにこの質問と答えられない


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## Flaminius

Is that accurate to use the verb _answer_ with two objects?
Cf. http://oxforddictionaries.com/definition/answer

I wonder what "I can't answer you this question" would mean especially in contrast with "I cannot answer this question."  Is it that the speaker knows the answer but it is classified information to the listener?

Speaking strictly from the Japanese grammar's point of view, _kotaeru_ cannot take PERSON and QUESTION at the same time.


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## Pacerier

Yea, something along those lines. Grammatically speaking I'm not sure if it's alright, but it sounds ok..


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## Flaminius

> Yea, something along those lines.


Okay, I take that as a cue to introduce some formality in the Japanese sentence.  Here is my suggestion:
ご質問にはお答えいたしかねます。


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## Pacerier

I'm having some difficulty breaking up the sentence above. Why is it 答えいたしかねます instead of 答えるしかねます?


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## uchi.m

Pacerier said:


> I'm having some difficulty breaking up the sentence above. Why is it 答えいたしかねます instead of 答えるしかねます?


ご質問 = formal way to say _question_
に = dative particle
は = emphatic particle
お答え = formal way to say _answer_
いたし = humble way to say _do_
かねます = _is beyond myself_

When you apply the formal tone, all formalized words refer to the listener. That's why it is not needed to say _you _(indirect object pronoun) at any time.


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## Xhris

~いたしかねます appears to be a more formal version of the ~できません. 

_* Source: http://detail.chiebukuro.yahoo.co.jp/qa/question_detail/q1411257324_


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## q_006

Pacerier said:


> Hi all, the translation for "I can't answer this question" is "この質問に答えられない"
> 
> I was wondering how should we translate the sentence: "I can't answer you this question" ?
> 
> I was thinking along the lines of "きみにこの質問を答えられない" but 答える is listed as an intransitive verb..





Flaminius said:


> Is that accurate to use the verb _answer_ with two objects?
> Cf. http://oxforddictionaries.com/definition/answer
> 
> I wonder what "I can't answer you this question" would mean especially  in contrast with "I cannot answer this question."  Is it that the  speaker knows the answer but it is classified information to the  listener?
> 
> Speaking strictly from the Japanese grammar's point of view, _kotaeru_ cannot take PERSON and QUESTION at the same time.




It's interesting that kotaeru is an intransitive verb seeing as it is acting on the noun "question". Please correct me if I'm wrong, but is "question" the indirect object here? Also, that sentence should be translated as: "I can't answer *to* you this question." In the same sense that "I gave him the letter." is "I gave *to* him the letter." "You" in this case is the indirect object.


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## Pacerier

Heys all thanks for the help =D


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## Flaminius

q_006 said:


> Please correct me if I'm wrong, but is "question" the indirect object here?


By definition, any noun that are not marked by _-o_ is an indirect object.  At the most abstract level, I believe _kotaeru_ is "to make a matching response."  Depending on what is to be matched, the verb means "make a reply," "meet a demand," or "answer a fetch" and so on.  To match is a transitive verb in English but the notion is expressed by _-ni_ in Japanese.  This is a postposition for comparison.

質問に答える
呼びかけに答える
悩みに答える
期待に答える


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## `simonxuanshen

I would personally use:質問に答えられない


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