Understanding ある as a 連体形 The sentence > translates to > I ran into a snake when I was exploring through weeds as tall as a person. **Question:** What is connected to? Is it a modifying , as in > If so, what purpose is it serving? It sounds like it's just saying "existing-weeds", which is pretty much the same thing as "weeds", no?

Yes that is in the , and is a relative clause that modifies . The "original" sentence is:

> () **** ( **** )
>
> The weeds are as tall as a human.
> (literally: As for the weeds, the height is as much as a human's height.)

This may still seem tricky, but we use this way to express the weight or the size of something. You may temporarily forget the meaning of "to exist".

* ()3()
This snake is 3 meters long.
* ()80kg()
He weights more than 80 kg.



( indicates the number is large. The -marked subject like is typically omitted.)

And we can make relativized phrases like so:

* ()3
a snake that is 3 meters long
* ()80kg
a man who weighs more than 80 kg



Here's a relevant dictionary definition:

> ###
>
>
> (Source: )