72835
In one section of the JLPT N3 practice test the next is written

妹：「今日は友達と晩ご飯を食べてくるね。」

兄：「わかった。九時過ぎるよう **なら** 、迎えに行くから、電話しろよ。」

Why is a conditional being used here?
CC BY-SA 4.0
2019-10-30T22:32:35.133
72834
2019-10-31T00:13:21.550
2019-10-30T23:17:13.900
34934
34934
question
grammar
Why is the なら conditional being used here?
You ask why a conditional is being used here, but I'm not quite sure why it
doesn't sound right to you.

なら is being used here in the same sense as "if" in English. ～ようなら is sort of a
set phrase used in a similar sense to "if it seems like", with ～よう meaning
"seem like"/"looks like". We also say ～ようだったら.

> わかった。 → Cool. / Got it. / Alright.
>
> 九時過ぎるよう → It seems like it will go past 9:00
>
> なら → if (that seems to be the case)
>
> 迎えに行くから → Because I'll go pick you up
>
> 電話しろよ → Call me.

So, putting it all together:

> "Alright. If it seems like it(your dinner)'s gonna go past 9:00, call me.
> I'll pick you up."

The conditional is used here to express that the 兄 only wants his 妹 to call
him so he can pick her up under the condition that her dinner seems like it's
going to go later than 9:00, presumably because he's worried for her safety at
night, but could be for a multitude of other reasons.
CC BY-SA 4.0
2019-10-31T00:13:21.550
72835
2019-10-31T00:13:21.550
2020-06-17T08:18:27.500
-1
35632
72834
answer