心こころ掛がける

こ

ろ

が

け

る

Common wordJLPTN1Freq.FrequencyTop 50,000

心掛ける · ichidan verb

Form	Positive	Negative
Dictionary	心こころ掛がける	心こころ掛がけない
Polite	心こころ掛がけます	心こころ掛がけません
Past polite	心こころ掛がけました	心こころ掛がけませんでした
Past	心こころ掛がけた	心こころ掛がけなかった
Te-form	心こころ掛がけて	心こころ掛がけないで
Desire	心こころ掛がけたい	心こころ掛がけたくない
Potential	心こころ掛がけられるalso 心こころ掛がけれる	心こころ掛がけられないalso 心こころ掛がけれない
Passive	心こころ掛がけられる	心こころ掛がけられない
Causative	心こころ掛がけさせる	心こころ掛がけさせない
Causative passive	心こころ掛がけさせられる	心こころ掛がけさせられない
Volitional	心こころ掛がけよう
Polite volitional	心こころ掛がけましょう
Imperative	心こころ掛がけろ	心こころ掛がけるな
Conditional	心こころ掛がければ	心こころ掛がけなければ
Tara conditional	心こころ掛がけたら	心こころ掛がけなかったら

Meanings

ichidan verb, transitive verb

keep in mind; try to; endeavor to

Expresses a conscious effort or intention to do something. Often used with volitional or dictionary form + ように, or with a noun phrase.

毎まい日にち運うん動どうするように心こころ掛がけています。
I try to exercise every day.
彼かれはいつも笑え顔がおを心こころ掛がけている。
He always makes a point of smiling.

See all 200 example sentences ›

Usage patterns

〈事こと〉を心こころがけるto make it a habit/point to do something
毎まい日にち運うん動どうすることを心こころがけている。
I make it a point to exercise every day.
〈動どう詞し〉ように心こころがけるto try to make sure that one does something
早はやく起おきるように心こころがけている。
I try to make sure I get up early.

Kanji

心heart, mind, spirit
掛hang, suspend, depend
懸state of suspension, hang, depend

Related words

努つとめるN2
努める stresses active striving toward a goal, while 心がける stresses keeping a principle or habit in mind.
気きを付つけるN4
気をつける is about being careful to avoid mistakes or danger, while 心がける is about consciously aiming for a positive habit or behavior.
留りゅう意い
留意する is a formal, written-register word for bearing something in mind, while 心がける is more everyday and implies ongoing effort.

Opposites

怠おこたるN2
怠る means to neglect or fail to make an effort, the opposite of 心がける's conscious, ongoing effort.

Don't confuse with

心こころ得えるN2
心得る means to understand or grasp something (e.g. a skill or rule), while 心がける means to make an ongoing effort to do something; the two are easily confused because both start with 心.
手てがけるN1
心がける looks similar because of the shared 〜がける ending but means to make a mental effort or keep something in mind, unlike 手がける which means to physically handle or work on a task.
心こころを込こめるN2
心がける means to keep something in mind or make it a habit, while 心を込める means to do something with sincere feeling and care, not just to remember to do it.

Word family

心こころ掛がけN1
attitude; mindset; intention; care

Written forms

心こころ掛がけるUsage20%
Standard kanji spelling; high priority.
心こころがけるUsage77%
Common variant with kana が; also high priority.
こころがけるUsage2%
心こころ懸がけるUsage<1%
rarely-used kanji form
Rarely used kanji form.

Etymology

Compound of 心 (こころ, 'heart, mind') + 掛ける (かける, 'to hang, set, apply'). The literal sense of 'setting one's mind to something' developed into the modern meaning of keeping something in mind and endeavoring to do it.