堪たえ兼かねる

た

え

か

ね

る

Meanings

1

ichidan verb, intransitive verb

cannot bear; unable to endure; lose patience

Expresses reaching the limit of one's patience or tolerance, often leading to an outburst or action. Used for both physical and emotional endurance.

彼かれの無ぶ礼れいな態たい度どに堪たえ兼かねて、つい怒ど鳴なってしまった。
Unable to endure his rude attitude, I ended up yelling at him.

暑あつさに堪たえ兼かねて、エアコンをつけた。

Unable to bear the heat, I turned on the air conditioner.

Written forms

堪たえ兼かねる
Standard kanji spelling using 堪える (to endure) and 兼ねる (to be unable to).
耐たえ兼かねる
Variant using 耐える, also meaning to endure. Less common but acceptable.
堪たえかねる
Mixed kanji-kana spelling, common in everyday writing.

Kanji

堪withstand, endure, support
兼concurrently, and, beforehand
耐-proof, enduring

Similar words

我が慢まんできない
A more common and direct way to say 'cannot stand' or 'cannot bear'. 堪え兼ねる is more literary and emphasizes the point of losing control.
耐たえられない
The potential negative form of 耐える, meaning simply 'cannot endure'. 堪え兼ねる adds a nuance of being at the breaking point.

Etymology

Compound of 堪える (taeru, 'to endure') and 兼ねる (kaneru, 'to be unable to'). The kanji 堪 means 'withstand', and 兼 means 'concurrently', but here it functions as a suffix expressing inability.