ichidan verb, transitive verb
Physical action of shaping something into a ball, rolling it up, or curling it into a rounded form.
紙を丸めてゴミ箱に投げた。
I crumpled the paper into a ball and threw it into the trash can.
猫が背中を丸めて
The cat is sleeping with its back curled up.
ichidan verb, transitive verb
cajole; talk around; explain away
Figurative use: to persuade someone by smooth talk, often with a nuance of manipulation or cleverly avoiding a direct confrontation. Related to 丸め込む.
See also: 丸め込む
彼は上司をうまく丸めて、休暇を取った。
He skillfully talked his boss around and got time off.
その政治家は問題を丸めて説明した。
The politician explained the issue away with smooth talk.
ichidan verb, transitive verb
round off (a fraction)
Mathematical use: to round a number, typically a fraction, to a simpler value.
計算結果を小数点以下で丸める。
Round off the calculation result after the decimal point.
ichidan verb, transitive verb
shave one's head
Used in the set phrase 頭を丸める, meaning to shave one's head completely, often associated with becoming a monk or showing remorse.
See also: 頭を丸める
彼は反省の意味を込めて頭を丸めた。
He shaved his head as a sign of remorse.
ichidan verb, transitive verb
Archaic use for treating multiple things as one group or mass. Rare in modern Japanese.
古い帳簿では、経費を丸めて記録することがあった。
In old account books, expenses were sometimes lumped together in the records.