96660
There's something strange in the grammar when translating this sentence:

"You are skilled at tennis."

「テニス が 上手です」

In English, "you" is the subject. But in Japanese, テニス ("tennis") is the
subject.

Does that mean the literal translation is "Tennis is skilled"?
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2022-10-14T21:45:20.580
96656
2022-10-31T03:02:46.073
2022-10-31T03:02:46.073
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question
grammar particle-が
Literal translation / grammar of「〜が上手です」?
The が is not a subject marker, so the literal translation is still "(The
subject) is good at tennis".

It is the usage of:

> [が](https://dictionary.goo.ne.jp/word/%E3%81%8C/#jn-34931)  
>  ２ 希望・好悪・能力などの対象を示す。「水―飲みたい」「紅茶―好きだ」「中国語―話せる」

That is, it marks "what" in wanting, liking, and ability to do something.
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2022-10-14T22:34:40.617
96658
2022-10-14T22:34:40.617
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answer
I think this could be seen as a case of a person’s ability with something
being described as a property of that thing. If that's indeed the case, it's
in a way related to what was discussed
[here](https://japanese.stackexchange.com/q/91189/43676). As pointed out
there, something like that happens in English, too. _This stew eats well_
doesn’t mean the stew does the act of eating but the stew is such that people
can eat it in a certain way or with a certain feeling. Borrowing this sentence
structure, テニスが上手です might be translated as:

> Tennis plays well.

I know a translation with a noun or an adjective would look more literal, but
I couldn’t find an English word that means something one does well in the way
_favorite_ works for something one likes. Substituting it with a made-up
literal translation of 上手, it would become:

> Tennis is an “upper-hand”.
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2022-10-15T01:07:41.250
96660
2022-10-15T03:39:34.220
2022-10-15T03:39:34.220
43676
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answer