取とり留とめる

と

り

と

め

る

Meanings

1

ichidan verb, transitive verb

narrowly escape death; hang onto life

Used almost exclusively in the set phrase 一命を取り留める (to barely survive) or similar life-threatening contexts. The object is typically 命 (life) or 一命.

Written forms

取とり留とめるUsage26%
Standard kanji spelling; common in news and formal writing.
とりとめるUsage51%
取とりとめるUsage23%
Mixed kana-kanji spelling; sometimes used for readability.
取とり留とめる
Less common variant without okurigana り.

Kanji

取take, fetch, take up
留detain, fasten, halt

Similar words

生いき延のびる
生き延びる means 'to survive' in a broader sense, while 取り留める specifically emphasizes narrowly escaping death, often in the phrase 一命を取り留める.
助たすかる
助かる is intransitive and means 'to be saved' or 'to survive', whereas 取り留める is transitive and focuses on the act of clinging to life.

Etymology

Compound of 取り (from 取る, 'to take') and 留める ('to stop, fasten'). The literal sense of 'taking and holding onto' developed into the idiomatic meaning of barely retaining life.