なぜやるか

Part7の読解では「anything but（決して〜でない）」「all but（ほとんど〜）」「nothing but（〜だけ）」などの慣用否定表現が、文脈の正確な解釈を左右します。また「cannot help ~ing（〜せずにはいられない）」と「cannot ~ too（いくら〜してもしすぎることはない）」はPart5の穴埋めでも出題されます。このLesson 28を終えると、慣用否定表現を正確に意味を取り、問題に応用できるようになります。

構文解説

anything but / nothing but / all but

anything but + 形容詞/名詞：「決して〜でない」（= far from / not at all）
nothing but + 名詞/動詞：「〜だけ / 〜しか〜ない」（= only）
all but + 形容詞/動詞：「ほとんど〜 / 〜も同然」（= almost）

• The final result of the six-month strategic review was anything but clear; the committee left with more questions than answers.
  → 6ヶ月の戦略的見直しの最終結果は決して明確ではなかった。委員会は答えよりも多くの疑問を抱えて終わった。

• The revised proposal contained nothing but the core financial projections, omitting all the supporting analysis that leadership had specifically requested.
  → 修正提案書には財務予測の核心部分だけが含まれており、リーダーシップが特に求めていた支援分析はすべて省かれていた。

• After months of painstaking revision and cross-departmental review, the merger integration plan is all but complete.
  → 何ヶ月にも及ぶ丁寧な改訂と部門横断的な審査の後、合併統合計画はほぼ完成も同然だ。

cannot help ~ing / cannot help but~（〜せずにはいられない）

cannot help + ~ing（動名詞）：「〜せずにはいられない」（= cannot avoid ~ing）
cannot help but + 動詞の原形：「〜せずにはいられない」（= cannot but + 動詞の原形）

• Upon discovering the accounting irregularity, the internal auditor could not help feeling a sense of unease about the overall integrity of the financial records.
  → 会計上の不規則性を発見したとき、内部監査担当者は財務記録全体の整合性について不安を感じずにはいられなかった。

• After reviewing the detailed client satisfaction survey, the operations director could not help but acknowledge that the service quality had declined significantly over the past two quarters.
  → 詳細な顧客満足度調査を確認した後、運営部長はサービス品質が過去2四半期で大幅に低下したことを認めずにはいられなかった。

cannot ~ too（いくら〜してもしすぎることはない）

cannot + 動詞 + too + 形容詞/副詞：「いくら〜しても〜しすぎることはない」（= no matter how ~ you do, it is not excessive）

• When preparing a legally binding contract, parties involved cannot be too careful in reviewing every clause for potential ambiguities or hidden liabilities.
  → 法的拘束力のある契約を作成する際、関係者たちは潜在的な曖昧さや隠れた責任についてすべての条項を確認する際に、いくら注意深くても注意深すぎることはない。

• Senior managers cannot emphasize too strongly the importance of clear and timely communication during periods of organizational change.
  → 組織変革の時期における明確でタイムリーなコミュニケーションの重要性は、シニアマネージャーがいくら強調しても強調しすぎることはない。

暗記用例文リスト（音読・反復用）

次の8文を意味を確認しながら声に出して読みましょう。

1. The result of the strategic review was anything but clear; the committee left with more questions than answers.
   → 戦略的見直しの結果は決して明確ではなかった。委員会は答えよりも多くの疑問を抱えて終わった。
2. The revised proposal contained nothing but the core financial projections, omitting all supporting analysis.
   → 修正提案書には財務予測の核心部分だけが含まれており、支援分析はすべて省かれていた。
3. After months of revision and cross-departmental review, the merger integration plan is all but complete.
   → 何ヶ月にも及ぶ改訂と部門横断的な審査の後、合併統合計画はほぼ完成も同然だ。
4. The internal auditor could not help feeling uneasy about the integrity of the financial records.
   → 内部監査担当者は財務記録全体の整合性について不安を感じずにはいられなかった。
5. The operations director could not help but acknowledge that service quality had declined significantly.
   → 運営部長はサービス品質が大幅に低下したことを認めずにはいられなかった。
6. When reviewing a legally binding contract, parties cannot be too careful about potential ambiguities.
   → 法的拘束力のある契約を確認する際、関係者は潜在的な曖昧さについていくら注意深くても注意深すぎることはない。
7. Senior managers cannot emphasize too strongly the importance of clear communication during organizational change.
   → 組織変革の時期における明確なコミュニケーションの重要性は、シニアマネージャーがいくら強調しても強調しすぎることはない。
8. The feedback gathered from participants was anything but encouraging, revealing widespread dissatisfaction.
   → 参加者から集めたフィードバックは決して励みになるものではなく、広範な不満が明らかになった。

確認問題

Section A｜穴埋め問題（5問）

空所に入る最も適切な語句を(A)〜(D)から選んでください。

Q1. The new customer retention initiative, which consumed a significant amount of time and departmental resources, turned out to be ------- straightforward once the team began the actual implementation phase.

(A) not entirely　(B) all but　(C) anything but　(D) nothing but

Q2. The manager’s decision to postpone the international expansion was based on ------- short-term financial projections, entirely disregarding the long-term strategic factors that the advisory team had carefully outlined.

(A) nothing but　(B) anything but　(C) all but　(D) all not

Q3. After an extended series of intensive negotiations spanning several months, the long-awaited multi-year licensing agreement was ------- finalized, with only the signature pages still requiring formal processing.

(A) nothing but　(B) anything but　(C) not yet　(D) all but

Q4. When the operations director discovered the critical error in the production data the night before the board presentation, she ------- spending an extra three hours verifying every figure in the report.

(A) could not but　(B) could not help　(C) was unable to help　(D) could not avoid but

Q5. During any contract renewal process, negotiators ------- thorough in reviewing every single clause of the agreement, as even seemingly minor oversights can result in significant long-term financial liabilities.

(A) should not be too　(B) need not be too　(C) cannot be too　(D) must not be too

Section B｜Part5形式問題（5問）

文の意味が通るように、空所に入る最も適切な語句を(A)〜(D)から選んでください。

Q6. The feedback collected from the first cohort of participants in the leadership development program was ------- positive; several attendees raised serious concerns about both the curriculum relevance and the overall delivery format.

(A) all but　(B) nothing but　(C) never but　(D) anything but

Q7. After learning that a long-standing client had transferred the high-value contract to a rival firm without any prior notification, the senior account manager ------- feel deeply disappointed by the completely unexpected turn of events.

(A) could not help but　(B) could not help to　(C) could not to help　(D) was not able to help

Q8. Following the unexpected departure of the chief technology officer and three senior engineers within the same month, the ambitious product development roadmap for the year was ------- abandoned indefinitely.

(A) nothing but　(B) all but　(C) anything but　(D) all not

Q9. The junior analyst’s recommendations during the executive strategy session were ------- restatements of the points the head of research had already submitted in the formal briefing document two weeks prior.

(A) all but　(B) anything but　(C) nothing but　(D) all of but

Q10. Regulators recently reminded financial institutions that they ------- transparent when disclosing material risk information to both current investors and the general public, given the potential consequences of incomplete disclosure.

(A) can be too　(B) cannot be　(C) must not be too　(D) cannot be too

正解一覧