形けい容よう

noun, noun or participle which takes 'suru', transitive verb

description; expression in words; figurative expression

Used for putting a thing, scene, feeling, or quality into words. Very common in patterns such as 形容する, 形容できない, and 形容しがたい; it can include metaphorical or figurative wording.

• その美うつくしさは言こと葉ばでは形けい容ようできない。

  That beauty cannot be described in words.

• 彼かれはその光こう景けいを「悪あく夢むのようだ」と形けい容ようした。

  He described the scene as being like a nightmare.

noun, noun or participle which takes 'suru', transitive verb

grammatical modification; qualification

Technical grammatical use for a word or phrase modifying or qualifying a noun or other element. This is the sense behind terms such as 形容詞, but 形容 itself is mainly used in linguistic explanation.

• 「赤あかい」は「花はな」を形けい容ようしている。

  Akai modifies the noun hana.

noun

form; figure; appearance

Older or literary noun use meaning the outward form or appearance of something. In modern everyday Japanese, 姿, 形, or 外見 is usually more natural for this meaning.

• 古ふるい文ぶん章しょうでは、形けい容ようが「姿すがた」や「かたち」の意い味みで使つかわれることがある。

  In older writing, 形容 is sometimes used to mean 'appearance' or 'form.'