困こまる

こ

ま

る

Common wordJLPTN5Freq.FrequencyTop 1,000

困る · godan verb (-ru)

Form	Positive	Negative
Dictionary	困こまる	困こまらない
Polite	困こまります	困こまりません
Past polite	困こまりました	困こまりませんでした
Past	困こまった	困こまらなかった
Te-form	困こまって	困こまらないで
Desire	困こまりたい	困こまりたくない
Potential	困こまれる	困こまれない
Passive	困こまられる	困こまられない
Causative	困こまらせる	困こまらせない
Causative passive	困こまらせられるalso 困こまらされる	困こまらせられないalso 困こまらされない
Volitional	困こまろう
Polite volitional	困こまりましょう
Imperative	困こまれ	困こまるな
Conditional	困こまれば	困こまらなければ
Tara conditional	困こまったら	困こまらなかったら

Meanings

godan verb (-ru), intransitive verb

be troubled; be at a loss; be stumped

Describes a state of not knowing what to do, often because of a problem or unexpected situation. Can range from mild confusion to serious difficulty.

道みちに迷まよって困こまった。
I got lost and didn't know what to do.
急きゅうに雨あめが降ふってきて困こまっている。
It suddenly started raining and I'm at a loss.

godan verb (-ru), intransitive verb

be bothered; be inconvenienced; be annoyed

Focuses on the feeling of being put out or annoyed by someone's actions or a troublesome situation. Often used when someone's behavior causes trouble.

夜よる遅おそくに電でん話わされると困こまる。
It bothers me when people call late at night.
そんなことを言いわれても困こまります。
I'm at a loss even if you say that (it's inconvenient for me).

godan verb (-ru), intransitive verb

be badly off; be hard up; be in financial difficulty

Specifically about financial hardship or being short of money. Often used in the phrase お金に困る.

彼かれはお金かねに困こまっているらしい。
He seems to be hard up for money.

See all 737 example sentences ›

Usage patterns

〈事こと〉に困こまるto be troubled by/stuck on something
道みちに迷まよって困こまった。
I got lost and didn't know what to do.
お金かねに困こまるto be short of money; to be financially hard up
最さい近きんお金かねに困こまっている。
I've been short of money lately.
〜て困こまるto be annoyed/bothered that ...
隣となりの犬いぬがうるさくて困こまる。
The neighbor's dog is noisy, and it's really bothering me.
〈人ひと〉が困こまるsomeone is troubled/put in a difficult position
急きゅうな変へん更こうで社しゃ員いんたちが困こまっている。
The employees are troubled by the sudden change.

Expressions

生せい活かつに困こまるstruggle financially; live in poverty; have difficulty making ends meet
返へん答とうに困こまるbe at a loss for an answer; not know how to respond

Kanji

困quandary, become distressed, annoyed

Related words· 10

悩なやむN3sense 1
悩む describes deep, often prolonged mental anguish or worry, while 困る covers everyday practical trouble or momentary confusion.
困こん惑わくN1sense 1
困惑する is a more formal, written word for feeling bewildered, whereas 困る is the common everyday verb for being troubled.
参まいるN4sense 1
参る in casual speech can mean 'to be at a loss/beaten by something,' similar to 困る but with a more resigned, colloquial tone.
苦くるしむN3sense 3
苦しむ implies suffering or struggling, often physically or financially, while 困る in the money sense is milder, just meaning 'to be short of funds.'

Show 6 more

困こまり果はてる
困る is the general, everyday verb for being troubled or not knowing what to do, while 困り果てる intensifies it to describe being utterly at a loss with no options left.
弱よわるN1
困る is the everyday word for being troubled or not knowing what to do, while 弱る in this sense adds a nuance of being mentally worn down by the situation.
煩わずらうN1
困る focuses on being stuck in a problematic situation, whereas 煩う emphasizes the inner mental anguish of worrying.
手てを焼やくN1
困る is a general verb for being troubled or in a fix, while 手を焼く specifically implies being at a loss about how to handle a difficult person or situation.
手てこずるN1
困る is a general word for being troubled or at a loss, while 手こずる is more specific to struggling with the actual handling of a person or task.
困こん窮きゅう
困る is the everyday verb for being troubled or inconvenienced, while 困窮 is much more formal and suggests severe, ongoing distress.

Opposites

助たすかるN3sense 1
助かる means to be saved or relieved of a burden, the opposite of 困る's sense of being troubled or stuck.

Don't confuse with

困こん難なんN3sense 1
困難 is a noun/adjective meaning 'difficulty,' while 困る is the verb describing the state of being troubled; they share the kanji 困 but differ in part of speech.

Word family· 7

困こまり眉まゆ
troubled eyebrows; worried-looking eyebrows
困こまり者もの
good-for-nothing; nuisance; troublemaker
困こまり顔がお
troubled face; worried expression
困こまり切きる
be completely at a loss; be greatly perplexed; be sorely troubled
困こまりごと
problem; trouble; worry

Show 2 more

困こまり抜ぬく
be at one's wit's end; be in great trouble; be at a loss
困こまり果はてる
be at a complete loss; have no idea what to do; be completely stumped

Written forms

困こまるUsage96%
Standard kanji spelling; the word is almost always written this way.
こまるUsage4%

Etymology

The kanji 困 combines 囗 (enclosure) and 木 (tree), suggesting a tree trapped in an enclosure, which came to mean 'to be in difficulty'. The verb 困る is a native Japanese word that has been associated with this kanji.