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I don't understand the meaning of に in this sentence:

> 切り出すに切り出せず、今日まできてしまいました

Is 切り出すに切り出せず fashioned after some particular grammar? I can't really think of
an interpretation that sounds natural.
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2015-05-05T05:04:28.387
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2015-05-05T06:22:46.530
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question
grammar meaning particle-に
The meaning of に in [切り出すに切り出せず]
> 「Verb + に（or にも） + **_Same_** Verb in **_potential_** form + ず」

is a very common phrase pattern that expresses one's inability or hesitation
to perform the action described by the verb.

See 一-2 in:
<https://kotobank.jp/word/%E3%81%AB%E3%82%82-592921#E3.83.87.E3.82.B8.E3.82.BF.E3.83.AB.E5.A4.A7.E8.BE.9E.E6.B3.89>

> 「[切]{き}り[出]{だ}すに切り出せず、[今日]{きょう}まできてしまいました。」

means:

> "I have not been quite able to bring up (this) topic until today."
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2015-05-05T06:19:34.867
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2015-05-05T06:19:34.867
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answer
This is more of a grammatical construction where you have a verb in base form
plus に followed by a negative potential form of the same verb. It basically
means that for some prohibiting reason, you couldn't do ~~~ even if you wanted
to.

終電を逃したから、帰るには帰れない。(Paraphrasing, "I missed the last train and I have no way to
get home.")

It looks like in the sentence you shared, it would mean something like, "(No
matter how much I wanted to) I had no way to bring it up..."
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2015-05-05T06:20:19.530
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2015-05-05T06:20:19.530
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Semantically, it means 切り出したかったのに切り出せず. (切り出す = to broach (a topic))

`[dictionary form of a verb] + に + [nai-form] + ない` is an uncommon, emphatic,
and literary set phrase which means "want to ～ but can't", "too
bad/extraordinary to ～", etc.

>   * 泣くに泣けない状況 a situation too bad to cry
>   * 笑うに笑えない話 a story too extraordinary to laugh at
>   * この料理は食うに食えない this dish is too bad to eat (tastes awful)
>   * 食うに食えない生活を送る have difficulty to live on (because of poverty)
>

I think this に corresponds to either of the two definitions of [this
page](http://dictionary.goo.ne.jp/leaf/jn2/166083/m0u/%E3%81%AB/):

> ［格助］名詞、名詞に準じる語、動詞の連用形・連体形などに付く。  
>  13 （動詞・形容詞を重ねて）強意を表す。「騒ぎ―騒ぐ」  
>  「風いたう吹き、海の面(おもて)ただあし―あしうなるに」〈枕・三〇六〉
>
> ［接助］活用語の連体形に付く。  
>  3 逆接の確定条件を表す。…けれども。…のに。…だが。  
>  「日中の照りに乾いて、きょうは道が好かった―、小庭の苔はまだ濡れている」〈鴎外・蛇〉
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2015-05-05T06:22:46.530
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2015-05-05T06:22:46.530
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answer