Why does " オモチャを欲しがっていた子供に買っ てくれてありがとう 。" translate to “Thank you for buying a toy for the child (that wanted the toy).”?
I can only translate it to “Thanks for buying the child (who wanted a toy)”, which sounds rather strange… Is it the particle “に” that changes the meaning?
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Yeah, に represents what the action was done toward/for, or rather to quote Tae Kim, the target of an action.
オモチャを欲しがっていた子供 を 買っ てくれてありがとう
Would be “Thanks for buying the child (who wanted a toy)” since を represents the direct object of an action.
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Thanks for the explanation.
I usually pay little attention to particles while reading, but I see they can be as important as the comma in “Let’s eat, Grandpa!”
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@Bramako, it is like @lopicake says.
By the way, this sentence can be read two ways.
オモチャを、（それを）欲しがっていた子供に買ってくれてありがとう。
Thank you for buying a toy to the child that wanted it.
オモチャを欲しがっていた子供に、（それを）買ってくれてありがとう。
Thank you for buying it to the child that wanted a toy.
The same thing can be said simply as:
子供が欲しがっていたオモチャを買っ てくれてありがとう
Thank you for buying the toy the child wanted.
Should I change example so it will be easier to understand?
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子供が欲しがっていたオモチャを買っ てくれてありがとう is a lot easier to understand, but maybe part of the nuance that you bought the toy specifically for the child is lost?
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