Related words 馬ば 鹿か にする Means 'to make fun of' or 'to look down on'. 馬鹿にできない is the negative potential form, meaning 'cannot be looked down on'.
侮あなど れない A more formal synonym meaning 'not to be underestimated'. 馬鹿にできない is slightly more colloquial.
Written forms 馬ば 鹿か にできない
Standard kanji-kana mixed spelling.
馬ば 鹿か に 出で 来き ない
Variant with 出来 in kanji; less common but still seen.
バカにできない
kana-only spelling
Katakana spelling of 馬鹿 ; adds a colloquial or emphatic tone.
Etymology From 馬鹿 (fool) + に (adverbial particle) + できない (negative potential form of する ). Literally 'cannot make a fool of', i.e., cannot be treated lightly.
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