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想像がつく (そうぞうがつく) Japanese meaning | Kotomora

想そう像ぞうがつく

Meanings

1

expression, godan verb (-ku)

be imaginable; be conceivable

Often used in negative form 想像がつかない to mean 'unimaginable' or 'I can't imagine'. Describes whether one can form a mental picture or guess about something.

彼かれがどんな気き持もちだったか、想そう像ぞうがつく。
I can imagine how he felt.
なぜそんなことをしたのか、まったく想

そう

像ぞう

が

つか

ない

。

I can't imagine at all why he did such a thing.

Written forms

想そう像ぞうがつく
Standard kanji spelling; つく is often written in kana in this expression.
想そう像ぞうが付つく
Alternate spelling using the kanji 付く for つく; less common but still seen.

Kanji

想idea, thought, conception
像statue, picture, image
付adhere, attach, refer to

Similar words

想そう像ぞうできる
想像できる is a more direct 'can imagine' using the potential form of する, while 想像がつく is a set phrase often used in negative contexts.

Etymology

Phrase composed of 想像 (imagination) + が (subject marker) + つく (to be attached/established). The verb つく here carries a sense of 'to come into being' or 'to take shape', yielding the meaning 'imagination takes shape' → 'be imaginable'.