防ふせぐ

ふ

せ

ぐ

Common wordJLPTN3Freq.FrequencyTop 5,000

防ぐ · godan verb (-gu)

Form	Positive	Negative
Dictionary	防ふせぐ	防ふせがない
Polite	防ふせぎます	防ふせぎません
Past polite	防ふせぎました	防ふせぎませんでした
Past	防ふせいだ	防ふせがなかった
Te-form	防ふせいで	防ふせがないで
Desire	防ふせぎたい	防ふせぎたくない
Potential	防ふせげる	防ふせげない
Passive	防ふせがれる	防ふせがれない
Causative	防ふせがせる	防ふせがせない
Causative passive	防ふせがせられるalso 防ふせがされる	防ふせがせられないalso 防ふせがされない
Volitional	防ふせごう
Polite volitional	防ふせぎましょう
Imperative	防ふせげ	防ふせぐな
Conditional	防ふせげば	防ふせがなければ
Tara conditional	防ふせいだら	防ふせがなかったら

Meanings

godan verb (-gu), transitive verb

defend against; protect against

Used when stopping harm, attack, weather, danger, etc. from reaching or affecting someone or something.

兵へい士したちは敵てきの攻こう撃げきを防ふせいだ。
The soldiers defended against the enemy attack.
厚あついカーテンで外そとの寒さむさを防ふせぐ。
Thick curtains protect against the cold outside.

godan verb (-gu), transitive verb

prevent; avert; avoid

Used for taking action so that an accident, problem, loss, spread, or other unwanted event does not occur.

事じ故こを防ふせぐために、道どう路ろに標ひょう識しきを増ふやした。
They added more road signs to prevent accidents.
手て洗あらいは感かん染せんの拡かく大だいを防ふせぐ。
Handwashing prevents the spread of infection.

See all 1,003 example sentences ›

Usage patterns

〈物もの〉で〈事こと〉を防ふせぐto use something to ward off/prevent something
傘かさで雨あめを防ふせいだ。
I used an umbrella to keep off the rain.
〈人ひと〉の侵しん入にゅうを防ふせぐto prevent someone from intruding/breaking in
警けい備び員いんが不ふ審しん者しゃの侵しん入にゅうを防ふせいだ。
The guard prevented the intruder from getting in.
〈事こと〉の拡かく大だいを防ふせぐto prevent the spread/expansion of something
早そう期き発はっ見けんが病びょう気きの拡かく大だいを防ふせぐ。
Early detection prevents the disease from spreading.

Expressions

伝でん染せんを防ふせぐprevent infection; stop the spread of disease
未み然ぜんに防ふせぐprevent in advance; nip in the bud; take precautions against

Kanji

防ward off, defend, protect
禦defend, protect, resist
拒repel, refuse, reject

Related words

守まもるN3sense 1
守る is the broader verb for protecting or keeping someone/something safe, while 防ぐ specifically means to block or stop a particular harm, attack, or problem.
防ぼう止しN3sense 2
防止する is a formal noun-plus-する verb used mainly for preventing accidents or problems in writing, while 防ぐ is the everyday verb usable in both concrete and abstract situations.
避さけるN3sense 2
避ける means to avoid something by staying away from it, while 防ぐ means to actively stop it from happening or from having an effect.
食くい止とめるN1
防ぐ is the general word for preventing something from happening at all, while 食い止める specifically means stopping something that is already advancing or spreading.
阻はばむN1
防ぐ means to defend against or prevent harm before it happens, while 阻む focuses on actively blocking something already in motion.

Don't confuse with

妨さまたげるN2
防ぐ means to block or prevent harm or an unwanted event, whereas 妨げる means to hinder or get in the way of an action or process that isn't necessarily harmful.
塞ふさぐN2
防ぐ (ふせぐ) sounds similar to 塞ぐ (ふさぐ) but means to prevent or defend against something, not to physically block or cover it.

Word family

防ふせぎ
defense; protection; prevention
防ふせぎ止とめる
prevent; stop; hold back

Written forms

防ふせぐUsage97%
Standard and common kanji spelling for both physical protection and preventing something from happening.
ふせぐUsage3%
禦ふせぐUsage<1%
rarely-used kanji form
Rare kanji spelling; useful mainly for recognizing older or unusual written forms.
拒ふせぐ
rarely-used kanji form
Rare kanji spelling given; 防ぐ is the normal modern spelling.

Etymology

The standard spelling uses 防, a kanji associated with defense and prevention, plus okurigana ぐ. The exact historical derivation of the native verb is not.