Can 向こうに in 向こうに大きなビルが見える also be interpreted as a relative clause?


> 向こうに大きなビルが見えます。

I translate it to

> The big building is visible over there.

# Question

Can I also translate it to the following?

> The big building over there is visible.

In other words, can I assume that 向こうに is a relative clause for 大きなビル?




It's impossible to parse it as a relative _clause_ because there is only one
verb/adjective (ie, 見えます) in the whole sentence. As a rule, each sub- _clause_
must have a verb/adjective.

So the real question is: "Which word this 向こうに modifies?"

向こう **に** can only modify a verb, and 向こう **の** modifies a noun. Both can be
translated as "over there" in English, but you need to distinguish them in
Japanese.

Since 向こうに can only modify a verb, it modifies nothing but 見える at the end of
the sentence. So your first translation is the correct one.

If you say 向こう **の** 大きなビルが見えます, that is grammatically correct and this 向こうの
modifies ビル ("the building over there"). But semantically, saying "a big
building over there" already means the speaker and the listener can see it, so
"A big building over there is visible" sounds awkward to me.

For example, 「向こうにある大きなビルは赤いです。」 is a semantically valid sentence which uses a
relative clause (向こうにある modifies ビル and ある is a verb).




It's impossible to parse it as a relative _clause_ because there is only one
verb/adjective (ie, 見えます) in the whole sentence. As a rule, each sub- _clause_
must have a verb/adjective.

So the real question is: "Which word this 向こうに modifies?"

向こう **に** can only modify a verb, and 向こう **の** modifies a noun. Both can be
translated as "over there" in English, but you need to distinguish them in
Japanese.

Since 向こうに can only modify a verb, it modifies nothing but 見える at the end of
the sentence. So your first translation is the correct one.

If you say 向こう **の** 大きなビルが見えます, that is grammatically correct and this 向こうの
modifies ビル ("the building over there"). But semantically, saying "a big
building over there" already means the speaker and the listener can see it, so
"A big building over there is visible" sounds awkward to me.

For example, 「向こうにある大きなビルは赤いです。」 is a semantically valid sentence which uses a
relative clause (向こうにある modifies ビル and ある is a verb).

