I've seen these signs around town and have some knowledge of the meanings of the Kanji individually but not all together. My first instinct was that it was telling us '
Don't put trash here' and in a way
it is yet in another it's also telling us something very important that I'm glad I took the time to understand.
Let's read:
避難器具降下地点
避難（ひなん）- Evacuation
器具（きぐ）- Equipment
降下（こうか）- Drop/Landing
地点（ちてん）- Point/Zone
Translation: Evacuation Equipment Drop Point
この- This
付近（ふきん）- Vicinity/Around or Near; Can also mean Neighborhood
に - Location particle
物（もの）- Objects
を - Subject to Verb particle
置かないで（おかない）- Don't put
下さい（ください）- Please
Translation: Please don't put objects in this vicinity.
In further
inspection of these areas the signs are located I noticed
there are rafters and ladders above where,
in case of an emergency (fire, earthquake, etc.), the
ladder would drop down and people could
escape the building in an emergency. Having objects clutter the drop point would prevent people from evacuating safely thus this sign is telling us '
don't put anything here that will get in the way please'.
Grammar Notes
~ない
でください
When we want to add please at the end of the verb we conjugate the plain form, 書く, into to the -te form, 書い
て, and add ください, for the positive 'Please write.' In the negative form we conjugate to the -nai form, 書かない, and add
でください, for the negative 'Please don't write.'
*Be careful with the -nai form conjugations of irregular verbs, verbs that end -う
in the plain form change to -あ [う - わ す- さ く - か む - ま る - ら ぶ - ば つ - た ぬ - な]
買わないで下さい - Please don't buy.
飲まないで下さい - Please don't drink.
待たないで下さい - Please don't wait.
読まないで下さい - Please don't read.
走らないで下さい - Please don't run.
押さないで下さい - Please don't push.
恐れないで下さい - Please don't be afraid.
遅刻しないで下さい - Please don't be late.
遊ばないで下さい - Please don't play.
着ないで下さい - Please don't wear.
コメントを書いてください。
以上です。
ジョシュア
