惚ほうける

ほ

う

け

る

Freq.FrequencyTop 100,000

惚ける · ichidan verb

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

Meanings

ichidan verb, intransitive verb

be dazed; be absent-minded; be mentally slow

Describes a state of mental dullness, befuddlement, or being out of it, often due to age, fatigue, or distraction.

年としをとって、少すこし惚ほうけてきたようだ。
He seems to have become a bit dazed with age.
疲つかれていて、頭あたまが惚ほうけている。
I'm so tired my mind is foggy.

auxiliary verb, ichidan verb

be engrossed in; be absorbed in

usually written using kana alone

Used as an auxiliary verb attached to the continuative form of another verb, indicating being completely absorbed in that action. Usually written in kana.

彼かれはゲームに遊あそびほうけている。
He is completely absorbed in playing games.
夏なつ休やすみは毎まい日にち寝ねほうけていた。
I spent the whole summer vacation just sleeping away.

ichidan verb, intransitive verb

become frayed and dishevelled; be fluffy

Describes hair, grass, or similar things becoming overgrown, tangled, or fluffy. Rare and somewhat literary; occasionally written as 蓬ける.

長ながい間あいだ手て入いれをしなかったので、庭にわの草くさがほうけてしまった。
The garden grass has become overgrown and dishevelled because it wasn't tended for a long time.

Kanji

惚fall in love with, admire, grow senile
呆be amazed, disgusted, shocked
耄senility

Related words

ぼける
ぼける is the more common word for 'become senile' or 'be mentally slow', while ほうける is less frequent and can also mean 'be engrossed'.
呆あきれる
呆れる means 'to be amazed/disgusted', not 'dazed'. The kanji 呆 is shared but the meaning is different.

Word family

待まち惚ぼうける
wait in vain; be stood up
病やみ惚ほうける
become senile from illness; become wasted by illness

Written forms

惚ほうける
Standard kanji for the 'dazed/absent-minded' sense; also used for the 'engrossed' sense.
ほうけるUsage80%
Usually written in kana for the auxiliary verb 'become engrossed in' sense.
呆ほうけるUsage20%
Alternative kanji for the 'dazed/absent-minded' sense.
耄ほうける
rarely-used kanji form
Rare kanji form for the 'dazed/absent-minded' sense.

Etymology

The historical derivation is uncertain. The kanji 惚 is associated with infatuation or absent-mindedness, 呆 with astonishment or foolishness, and 耄 with senility. The reading ほうける may be related to ほう (direction/state) + ける (verb-forming suffix), but this is speculative.

Meanings

ichidan verb, intransitive verb

be dazed; be absent-minded; be mentally slow

Describes a state of mental dullness, befuddlement, or being out of it, often due to age, fatigue, or distraction.

年としをとって、少すこし惚ほうけてきたようだ。
He seems to have become a bit dazed with age.
疲つかれていて、頭あたまが惚ほうけている。
I'm so tired my mind is foggy.

auxiliary verb, ichidan verb

be engrossed in; be absorbed in

usually written using kana alone

Used as an auxiliary verb attached to the continuative form of another verb, indicating being completely absorbed in that action. Usually written in kana.

彼かれはゲームに遊あそびほうけている。
He is completely absorbed in playing games.
夏なつ休やすみは毎まい日にち寝ねほうけていた。
I spent the whole summer vacation just sleeping away.

ichidan verb, intransitive verb

become frayed and dishevelled; be fluffy

Describes hair, grass, or similar things becoming overgrown, tangled, or fluffy. Rare and somewhat literary; occasionally written as 蓬ける.

長ながい間あいだ手て入いれをしなかったので、庭にわの草くさがほうけてしまった。
The garden grass has become overgrown and dishevelled because it wasn't tended for a long time.

Written forms

惚ほうける

Standard kanji for the 'dazed/absent-minded' sense; also used for the 'engrossed' sense.

ほうけるUsage80%

Usually written in kana for the auxiliary verb 'become engrossed in' sense.

呆ほうけるUsage20%

Alternative kanji for the 'dazed/absent-minded' sense.

耄ほうける

rarely-used kanji form

Rare kanji form for the 'dazed/absent-minded' sense.