Combination actions
Those rules combine a verb and an adjective to make a new meaning.
V-ます
+ Adj
Difficulty
~やすい: easy
Means:
- easy to do
- likely to happen
- has a tendency of
Example
見やすい。 Easy to see.
泣きやすい。 Prone to crying.
~にくい・~づらい: difficult
Means that something is difficult to do. While にくい is the broader form, づらい is used in a more subjective manner, for actions that are intentional.
Example
見にくい。 Difficult to see.
～がたい: very difficult
~がたい means that something is very difficult to do. It is more extreme than ~にくい.
Example
それは信じがたいな。 That’s hard to believe…
~始める
～始める means that something starts or has started. Expresses intentionality.
Example
飲み始める。 To start to drink.
~出す
～出す means that something suddenly started. Has the nuance of being unintentional, or cannot be avoided.
Example
雨が降り出した。 It suddenly started raining.
~続く
～続く means that something continues.
Example
飲み続ける。 To continue to drink.
~終わる
～終わる means that something ends.
Example
飲み終わります。 To stop to drink.
～上げる
This can be used both as:
- 上げる means “finish doing” (transitive)
- 上がる means “was finished” (intransitive)
Example
全部の夏休みの宿題を出来上げった。 I have finished all my summer homework.
～合う
～合う means that the action is done with someone else.
Example
妹と家へ帰り会った。 I went home with my sister.
～切る・～切れる・～切れない
~切る means “to do completely” and ~切れる means “able to do completely”. The negative form ~切れない means “unable to do”, “too much to complete”. It focuses on the end of the action rather than the process.
Example
父はすべての部屋を掃除し切った。 My father finished cleaning all the rooms.
彼は納豆を食べ切れなかった。 He could not finish all his natto.
～通す
~通す means “to do something until the end”, “continually” or “through”. It focuses on the process of the action, rather than its ending.
Example
マラソンの全部を走り通した。 He ran through the whole marathon.
～直す
~直す means to do something again.
Example
今年をやり直すてほしい。 I want this year to start over.
～っぱなし
~っぱなし means leaving something as it is.
Example
この１３時間飛行で座りっぱなしでした。 I sat the entire time on this 13 hours flight.
～込む
~込む has multiple meanings depending on the verb. Sometimes it is idiomatic and so it cannot exactly be guessed. However, there are some broad categories.
⚠ Depending on the context, verbs can fall into multiple categories!
Going into
- If the verb describes a movement, adding 込む add the meaning of “into” (jumping ⇒ jumping into).
- If the verb already has a notion of “into”, it put emphasis into it. It could have a meaning like “completely into”.
Example
海に飛び込んだ。 He jumped into the ocean.
Emphasis
When the verb does not include physical movement, 込む can be used to put emphasis on certain verbs (deeply, a lot, etc).
Example
猫が眠り込んでいます。 The cat is fast asleep.
Repetition
The last common meaning is for an action that is repeated until a point is reached. It can also be an action that is done for a long time.
Example
毎朝5キロ走り込む。 Every morning I go for a 5km run (emphasis on the fact that it is a long run).