ずくめ

also: づくめ

Meanings

usually written using kana alone

Suffix attached to nouns to mean 'entirely that thing' or 'nothing but that'. Often used in set phrases like 黒ずくめ (all black), いいことずくめ (nothing but good things), ごちそうずくめ (a feast of delicacies).

今日きょうはいいことずくめの一いち日にちだった。
Today was a day of nothing but good things.
彼かれは黒くろずくめの服ふく装そうで現あらわれた。
He showed up dressed entirely in black.

See all 13 example sentences ›

Grammar

ずくめall in …; nothing butN1

Kanji

尽exhaust, use up, run out of

Don't confuse with

だらけN1
だらけ always carries a negative sense of being overrun by something unpleasant, whereas ずくめ just means 'nothing but' a single thing and can be neutral or even positive (黒ずくめ, いいことずくめ).

Written forms

ずくめUsage79%
Kana spelling is standard; the kanji form 尽くめ is rare and not commonly used.
づくめUsage18%
Rendaku variant used after certain nouns, e.g., 黒ずくめ (くろずくめ).
尽くめUsage3%
- ずくめ
  Kanji spelling is rare; kana is preferred.
- づくめ

Etymology

Derived from the verb 尽くす (つくす, 'to exhaust, to use up'), with the suffix め. The exact derivation is uncertain, but it conveys the idea of being completely filled with or consisting of something.