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Learn Japanese with Anime - Stealing Is What Thieves Do Best Even If It's A Person's Heart

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Learn Japanese with Anime - Stealing Is What Thieves Do Best Even If It's A Person's Heart

In this video we’re going to analyse Kaito Kid’s quote from Detective Conan: The Lost Ship in the Sky (anime scene edited).

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Analysis

泥棒は盗むのが商売

The grammar is AはBがC meaning “As for A, B is C”. It’s used when you introduce the topic A and describe what A does or what A is like.

The declarative だ can be added which sounds more confident and assertive whereas it sounds softer without だ. In polite speech, simply add です.

Here are some examples:

  • 私は月曜日が休みです (literally “As for me, Monday is my day off”) – “I have a day off on Monday”.
  • 田中さんはテニスが趣味です (literally “As for Mr. Tanaka, tennis is his hobby”) – “Mr. Tanaka’s hobby is tennis”.

So 泥棒は盗むのが商売 literally is “As for thieves, stealing is their business” saying “thieves’ business is stealing” or “stealing is what thieves do best”. Let’s look at each word:

The A is 泥棒 meaning “thieves“.

The B is 盗むの meaning “stealing”. A verb plain-form followed by the nominaliser の works as a noun.

The C is 商売 meaning “business” or “trade”. It can be replaced with 仕事 meaning “work” but 商売 sounds more entrepreneurial whereas 仕事 sounds more like an employed job.

たとえそれが人の心でもね

The grammar is たとえ A が B でも meaning “even if A is B”. Only “A が B でも” also means “even if A is B” but たとえ emphasises that the statement is very hypothetical.

The A is それ meaning “it” which indicates what thieves steal.

The B is 人の心 meaning “a person’s heart”.

So たとえそれが人の心でも means “even if it’s a person’s heart”.

And the last ね is the particle used to adjust the tone and draw the listener’s attention to the statement.

These clauses are actually inverted and the normal clause order without inversion would be たとえそれが人の心でもね、泥棒は盗むのが商売。By inverting the clauses, you can emphasise the subordinate clause as well as making the speech catchy or dramatic.

Sentences

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Kaito Kid’s Quote

Stealing is what thieves do best, even if it’s a person’s heart.

A は B が C (As for A, B is C)

My hobby is reading manga.
My only reason to live for right now is my job.
The baby’s job is to sleep.

たとえ + A が + B でも (even if A is B)

Even if it’s a joke, it hurts me.
Even if my job is hard, I don’t want to quit.
Even if the rumour is true, I can’t hate him.

Vocabulary

Romaji Hide|Display Default|Add to ▼
akachan
noun
  1. baby
ikigai
noun
  1. something one lives for
uwasa
noun, suru verb, no adjective
  1. rumour; gossip
kizutsuku
godan verb, intransitive verb
  1. to get hurt feelings
kirai
na adjective, noun
  1. disliked; hated
shigoto
noun, suru verb
  1. work
shumi
noun
  1. hobby
joudan
noun, no adjective
  1. jest; joke (じょうだん is sometimes written 笑談)
shoubai
noun, suru verb
  1. trade; business
taihen
na adjective, noun
  1. difficult; hard
tatoe
adverb
  1. even if (often paired with ても, でも, and とも)
toshitemo
expression
  1. even if ... (used for hypothetical situations)
  2. also as ... (after a noun or pronoun)
dorobou
noun
  1. thief; burglar
nusumu
godan verb, transitive verb
  1. to steal
neru
ichidan verb, intransitive verb
  1. to sleep (lying down)

Kanji

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Stroke Count
15 Strokes
English Meaning
  1. rumor, gossip, hearsay
Readings
Kun'yomi: うわさ。
On'yomi: ソン。
Stroke Count
2 Strokes
English Meaning
  1. person
Readings
Kun'yomi: ひと、-と、-り。
On'yomi: ニン、ジン。
Stroke Count
3 Strokes
English Meaning
  1. large, big
Readings
Kun'yomi: おお、おお.きい、おお.いに、もと、まさる、ひろし、はじめ、とも、たかし、おう、わ、うふ、-おお.いに、おお-。
On'yomi: ダイ、ダ、タイ、タ。
Stroke Count
4 Strokes
English Meaning
  1. now
Readings
Kun'yomi: いま。
On'yomi: コン、キン。
Stroke Count
5 Strokes
English Meaning
  1. book, present, main, origin, true, real, counter for long cylindrical things
Readings
Kun'yomi: もと。
On'yomi: ホン。
Stroke Count
5 Strokes
English Meaning
  1. life, genuine, birth
Readings
Kun'yomi: い.きる、い.かす、い.ける、う.む、う.まれる、は.える、は.やす、お.う、なま、き、あい、あさ、あり、あらは.る、あ.る、あれ、い、いか、いき、いく、いけ、う、うぶ、うまい、うまは.る、うまる、うる、え、お、おい、おいし.く、おお、おき、おや、おや.す、おゆ、きつ、ぎゅう、くるみ、ごせ、さ、さん、すぎ、すすむ、せ、そ、そう、たか、ちる、なじ、な.す、なせ、なば、なり、なる、な.る、にう、にゅう、ぬく、のう、のり、ばい、はえ、はさま、ふ、ぶ、ふゆ、み、む、む.す、もう、や、ゆ、よ、よい、よど、りゅう、-う、う.まれ、なま-、うま.れる、うまれ。
On'yomi: しょう、セイ、サン、ショウ。
Stroke Count
14 Strokes
English Meaning
  1. read
Readings
Kun'yomi: よ.む、よ.み、よみ、-よ.み。
On'yomi: ズ、ドク、トウ、トク。
Stroke Count
4 Strokes
English Meaning
  1. heart, mind, spirit, heart radical (no. 61)
Readings
Kun'yomi: こころ、-ごころ。
On'yomi: シン。
Stroke Count
5 Strokes
English Meaning
  1. attend, doing, official, serve
Readings
Kun'yomi: つか.える。
On'yomi: ジ、シ。
Stroke Count
7 Strokes
English Meaning
  1. sell
Readings
Kun'yomi: う.る、う.れる、うる、め、うり。
On'yomi: メ、バイ、マイ。
Stroke Count
7 Strokes
English Meaning
  1. private, I, me
Readings
Kun'yomi: わたくし、わたし、わたくし.する、わし、ひそ.か。
On'yomi: シ。
Stroke Count
7 Strokes
English Meaning
  1. red
Readings
Kun'yomi: あか、あか.い、あか-、あか.らむ、あか.らめる。
On'yomi: シャク、セキ。
Stroke Count
8 Strokes
English Meaning
  1. matter, thing, fact, business, reason, possibly
Readings
Kun'yomi: こと、つか.う、つか.える。
On'yomi: ジ、シ、ズ。
Stroke Count
8 Strokes
English Meaning
  1. flavor, taste
Readings
Kun'yomi: あじ、あじ.わう。
On'yomi: ミ、ビ。
Stroke Count
8 Strokes
English Meaning
  1. brush-stroke, picture
Readings
Kun'yomi: えが.く、か.く、かぎ.る、はか.る、かく.する、はかりごと。
On'yomi: エ、ガ、ワク、カイ、カク。
Stroke Count
6 Strokes
English Meaning
  1. hit, right, appropriate, himself
Readings
Kun'yomi: あ.たる、あ.てる、あ.たり、まさ.に、まさ.に・・・すべし、たい、あ.て、まさ.にべし。
On'yomi: トウ、トウ。
Stroke Count
8 Strokes
English Meaning
  1. he, that, the
Readings
Kun'yomi: か、かれ、か.の、かの。
On'yomi: ヒ。
Stroke Count
9 Strokes
English Meaning
  1. unusual, change, strange
Readings
Kun'yomi: か.(わ)る、か.える、か.わり、か.わる。
On'yomi: ヘン。
Stroke Count
11 Strokes
English Meaning
  1. make a deal, selling, dealing in, merchant
Readings
Kun'yomi: あきな.う。
On'yomi: ショウ。
Stroke Count
11 Strokes
English Meaning
  1. steal, rob, pilfer
Readings
Kun'yomi: ぬす.む、ぬす.み。
On'yomi: ドウ、トウ。

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