へりくだる

へ

り

く

だ

る

JLPTN1Freq.FrequencyTop 100,000

へりくだる · godan verb (-ru)

Form	Positive	Negative
Dictionary	へりくだる	へりくだらない
Polite	へりくだります	へりくだりません
Past polite	へりくだりました	へりくだりませんでした
Past	へりくだった	へりくだらなかった
Te-form	へりくだって	へりくだらないで
Desire	へりくだりたい	へりくだりたくない
Potential	へりくだれる	へりくだれない
Passive	へりくだられる	へりくだられない
Causative	へりくだらせる	へりくだらせない
Causative passive	へりくだらせられるalso へりくだらされる	へりくだらせられないalso へりくだらされない
Volitional	へりくだろう
Polite volitional	へりくだりましょう
Imperative	へりくだれ	へりくだるな
Conditional	へりくだれば	へりくだらなければ
Tara conditional	へりくだったら	へりくだらなかったら

Meanings

godan verb (-ru), intransitive verb

humble oneself; speak humbly; abase oneself

usually written using kana alone

Used when a person intentionally lowers themselves in speech or attitude, often to show respect to the listener. Common in formal or polite contexts.

彼かれはいつもへりくだって話はなす。
He always speaks humbly.
そんなにへりくだらなくてもいいですよ。
You don't have to humble yourself so much.

See all 10 example sentences ›

Usage patterns

〈人ひと〉にへりくだるto be humble toward someone
彼かれは上じょう司しにへりくだった態たい度どで話はなした。
He spoke to his boss in a humble manner.
へりくだった〈言こと葉ば〉で話はなすto speak using humble language
彼かの女じょはへりくだった言こと葉ばでお礼れいを述のべた。
She expressed her thanks using humble language.

Kanji

謙self-effacing, humble oneself, condescend
遜humble, modest

Related words

謙けん虚きょN2
謙虚 describes humility as a personality trait or attitude, while へりくだる describes the act of intentionally lowering oneself in speech or behavior.
謙けん遜そんN2
謙遜 (often as 謙遜する) refers to modestly downplaying one's own abilities or achievements, whereas へりくだる focuses on adopting a humble manner toward another person.
卑ひ下げ
卑下する can carry a negative sense of excessively belittling oneself, while へりくだる is more neutral and typically used to show respect in polite interaction.

Opposites

高たかぶる
高ぶる means to become arrogant or put on airs, the opposite of へりくだる, which means to humble oneself before others.

Written forms

へりくだるUsage88%
Usually written in kana. The kanji forms 謙る and 遜る exist but are rare.
遜へりくだるUsage7%
Rare kanji form; the kana spelling is strongly preferred.
謙へりくだるUsage4%
Rare kanji form; the kana spelling is strongly preferred.

Etymology

Compound of 謙り (heri, 'humility', from verb 謙る heru) + 下る (kudaru, 'to go down'). The exact historical derivation is uncertain, but the word has been used since classical Japanese to express self-abasement.