憧あこがれる

あ

こ

が

れ

る

Common wordJLPTN3Freq.FrequencyTop 20,000

Meanings

1

ichidan verb, intransitive verb

long for; yearn for; admire; aspire to

Expresses a deep emotional longing or admiration for something or someone, often with a sense of idealization. Commonly used with the particle に.

彼かれは都と会かいの生せい活かつに憧あこがれている。
He longs for city life.

私わたし

は

昔むかし

から

ピアニスト

に

憧あこが

れ

て

い

た

。

I have always admired pianists.

自じ由ゆうな働はたらき方かたに憧あこがれる人ひとは多おおい。

Many people yearn for a flexible way of working.

Written forms

憧あこがれるUsage70%
Standard kanji spelling; the most common written form.
あこがれるUsage30%
Kana spelling is common in informal writing and when the kanji is not needed.
憬あこがれるUsage1%
rarely-used kanji form
Rarely used kanji form; learners will almost always encounter 憧れる.
憧憬あこがれるUsage<1%
search-only kanji form

Kanji

憧yearn after, long for, aspire to
憬yearn for, aspire to, admire

Similar words

恋こい慕したう
恋い慕う is a stronger, more literary term for yearning, often with a romantic or deeply emotional nuance, while 憧れる can be used for admiration of ideals or lifestyles.
切せつ望ぼうする
切望する means to earnestly desire or crave something, often with a sense of urgency, whereas 憧れる implies a more wistful, admiring longing.

Etymology

Derived from the classical verb あこがる, which originally meant 'to be separated from one's heart' or 'to be absent-minded,' evolving to mean 'to yearn for something distant.' The kanji 憧 is a 国字 (kokuji) created in Japan to represent this specific meaning.