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Sample Sentences with 寝返り

寝返り(negaeri: turning over while sleeping in bed; betrayal)
     to sleep + to return

The following two sentences are nearly identical but convey very different ideas:

1. 彼は一晩中寝返りを打った。
Kare wa hitobanjū negaeri o utta.
The boy tossed about all night.
     [Sense 1: Turning over while sleeping in bed]

2. 彼は寝返りを打った。
Kare wa negaeri o utta.
He went over to the other side.
     [Sense 2: Betrayal]

A breakdown of the kanji:

(kare: he)
一晩中 (hitobanjū: throughout the night)
     one + night + suffix meaning
     “throughout”

(u(tsu): to attack, to strike, to impress upon)

It’s unclear which definition of applies here. Maybe with restless sleep, one keeps striking the mattress.

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