しかねる

し

か

ね

る

しかねる · ichidan verb

Form	Positive	Negative
Dictionary	しかねる	しかねない
Polite	しかねます	しかねません
Past polite	しかねました	しかねませんでした
Past	しかねた	しかねなかった
Te-form	しかねて	しかねないで
Desire	しかねたい	しかねたくない
Potential	しかねられるalso しかねれる	しかねられないalso しかねれない
Passive	しかねられる	しかねられない
Causative	しかねさせる	しかねさせない
Causative passive	しかねさせられる	しかねさせられない
Volitional	しかねよう
Polite volitional	しかねましょう
Imperative	しかねろ	しかねるな
Conditional	しかねれば	しかねなければ
Tara conditional	しかねたら	しかねなかったら

Meanings

ichidan verb, transitive verb

be reluctant to do; hesitate to do; be unable to do; not be in a position to do

usually written using kana alone

Expresses that the speaker finds it difficult, inappropriate, or impossible to do something, often due to personal reluctance, social constraints, or lack of ability. Used with the continuative form of a verb (e.g., 言いかねる, 決めかねる).

Kanji

兼concurrently, and, beforehand
仕attend, doing, official
為do, change, make

Related words

しかねない
しかねない means 'could possibly do' or 'there is a risk of doing', expressing a negative potential outcome, whereas しかねる expresses reluctance or inability.
しにくい
しにくい means 'hard to do' in a general sense of difficulty, while しかねる implies a psychological or situational barrier making the action hard to perform or inappropriate.
できない
できない is a straightforward statement of inability, whereas しかねる often carries a nuance of hesitation, politeness, or situational inappropriateness.

Written forms

し兼かねる
Rare kanji spelling; the kana form is strongly preferred.
仕し兼かねる
rarely-used kanji form
Rare kanji spelling; the kana form is strongly preferred.
為し兼かねる
rarely-used kanji form
Rare kanji spelling; the kana form is strongly preferred.

Etymology

Compound of the continuative form of する (to do) + 兼ねる (to combine, to be unable to do). The combination expresses difficulty or reluctance in performing the preceding action.