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必死 (ひっし, hisshi) Japanese meaning: frantic | Kotomora

必ひっ死し

ひ

っ

し

Common word›JLPTN3›Freq.FrequencyTop 5,000

Meanings

1

na-adjective, noun which may take the genitive case particle 'no'

frantic; desperate; with all one's might

Describes a state of extreme effort or desperation, often used adverbially with に or as a な-adjective. Very common in everyday speech.

彼かれは必ひっ死

し

に

走はし

っ

た

。

He ran desperately.

必ひっ死しの努ど力りょくで試し験けんに合ごう格かくした。

I passed the exam through frantic effort.

2

inevitable death; certain death

Literal meaning of the kanji; used in historical or dramatic contexts to refer to a situation where death is unavoidable. Rare in modern conversation.

戦せん場じょうでは必ひっ死しを覚かく悟ごしなければならない。
On the battlefield, one must be prepared for certain death.

3

brinkmate; inevitable checkmate

Shogi term for a position where checkmate is unavoidable regardless of the opponent's moves. Also written 必至.

See also: 必至

この局きょく面めんはすでに必ひっ死しだ。
This position is already brinkmate.

Usage patterns

必ひっ死しに〈動どう詞し〉to do something desperately/frantically
彼かれは必ひっ死しに助たすけを求もとめた。
He desperately cried out for help.
必ひっ死しで〈動どう詞し〉to do something with all one's might, desperately
彼かの女じょは必ひっ死しで試し験けん勉べん強きょうをした。
She studied desperately hard for the exam.
必ひっ死しになるto become desperate; to get serious about something
彼かれはチームを守まもるために必ひっ死しになった。
He got desperate trying to protect the team.
必ひっ死しの〈事こと〉a desperate (effort/attempt/struggle)
選せん手しゅたちは必ひっ死しの努ど力りょくを見みせた。
The players showed a desperate effort.
〈人ひと〉は必ひっ死しだsomeone is desperate/frantic
子こ供どもを助たすけようと母はは親おやは必ひっ死しだった。
The mother was desperate to save her child.

Kanji

必invariably, certain, inevitable
死death, die

Related words· 6

一いっ生しょう懸けん命めいN4sense 1
一生懸命 means 'as hard as one can' without implying life-or-death stakes, while 必死 conveys desperation as if one's life depended on it.
死しに物もの狂ぐるい sense 1
死に物狂い is an even more intense, almost frantic version of 必死, often used for extreme, all-out struggles.
懸けん命めい sense 1
懸命 describes diligent, earnest effort without the desperate or life-threatening nuance that 必死 carries.
ガチガチ
必死 emphasizes desperate effort or urgency, while ガチガチ (sense of relentless intensity) stresses doing something nonstop without a break.

Show 2 more

躍やっ起き
必死 suggests life-or-death, serious desperation, while 躍起 can describe a lighter, sometimes excited eagerness as well as frantic effort.
命いのちがけ
必死 describes desperate, all-out effort in general, while 命がけ specifically implies risking one's actual life.

Don't confuse with

必ひっ至し
必死 and 必至 are pronounced identically, but 必死 means 'desperate/frantic' while 必至 means 'inevitable' (as in a shogi brinkmate or a certain outcome).
必ひつ要ようN4
必死 (desperate, frantic) shares the kanji 必 with 必要 but describes an intense effort, not a requirement.
必ひっ殺さつ
必殺 describes a technique or blow meant to be lethal or decisive, while 必死 describes frantic, all-out effort, and the two are easy to mix up because they share the kanji 必.

Built from

必ひつ+死し

Written forms

必ひっ死しUsage99%
Standard kanji form; high-frequency in news and general use.
ひっしUsage1%
Kana spelling is common in casual writing, especially for the adjectival sense.

Etymology

From the kanji 必 (inevitable) and 死 (death), originally meaning 'certain death'. The modern adjectival sense developed from the idea of acting as if one's life depended on it.