Translation guide
The English verb 'abandon' covers leaving someone or something behind, giving up on a plan or activity, or surrendering to an emotion. Japanese uses different words depending on what is being abandoned and the nuance.
To desert or forsake someone, or to leave a place permanently.
To abandon or desert someone, often with a sense of betrayal or neglect. Used for people.
He abandoned his family.
To leave someone or something behind, often physically. Can be used for people or things.
She abandoned her child in the car.
Formal term for abandoning rights, claims, or property. Not typically used for people.
He abandoned his inheritance rights.
To stop doing something before it is finished, or to renounce an intention.
To give up on something, to abandon hope or effort. Very common and natural.
To abandon an intention or plan, often after careful consideration. Slightly formal.
We abandoned the mountain climb.
To terminate or abandon a project, program, or event, often officially.
To let oneself be controlled by a feeling, often without restraint.
To abandon oneself to something, to give oneself over to an emotion or sensation. The noun before に indicates the feeling.
He abandoned himself to grief.
She danced, abandoning herself to joy.
To indulge in or abandon oneself to something, often a pleasure or negative emotion. Can imply excess.
He abandoned himself to drink.
To leave a vehicle, especially in an emergency or because it is no longer usable.
諦める means giving up on a goal or hope, not physically leaving someone. For abandoning a person, use 見捨てる or 置き去りにする.
She abandoned him.
見捨てる emphasizes emotional abandonment or betrayal. 置き去りにする focuses on the physical act of leaving someone or something behind, often in a specific location.
そのプロジェクトは打ち切られた。
The project was abandoned.
彼は車を道端に乗り捨てた。
He abandoned the car by the roadside.