やおちょう

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Japanese, Naturally...

By Mizue Sasaki

     八百長(やおちょう)

A:昨日のすもう、あれは八百長ですね。
B:そんなこと絶対にありませんよ。すもうはれっきとしたスポーツですから。

Yaochoo

A: Kinoo no sumoo, are wa yaochoo desu ne.
B: Sonna koto zettai ni arimasen yo. Sumoo wa rekki to shita supootsu desu kara.
* * *
A: That sumo bout yesterday, I reckon it was fixed.
B: Absolutely not. Sumo's a respectable sport, that's why.

* * *

Yaochoo occurs when the result of a sporting competition has been previously "fixed" and one of the opponents or participants deliberately loses.
In the example here, B stresses his absolute disagreement using zettai ni-the negative form of the verb and this pattern is frequently met as in zettai ni shimasen (definitely not do) or kare wa hitomae dewa zettai ni utawanai (he never sings in front of others).
Please note, however, that zettai ni can also be used in the affirmative as in zettai ni kachimasu (I am determined to win) or zettai ikimasu (I shall definitely go). The particle ni is often dropped in conversation

* * *

Yaochoo-a put-up job, a fix, a prearranged match;
kinoo-yesterday; zettai (ni)-definitely, absolutely, at all
costs; rekki to shita-respectable, decent, honorable.

Mizue Sasaki is a lecturer at Nihon University.

ASAHI EVENING NEWS, SATURDAY, JANUARY 25, 1986