むずかる

also: むずがる · むつかる

む

ず

か

る

むずかる · godan verb (-ru)

Form	Positive	Negative
Dictionary	むずかる	むずからない
Polite	むずかります	むずかりません
Past polite	むずかりました	むずかりませんでした
Past	むずかった	むずからなかった
Te-form	むずかって	むずからないで
Desire	むずかりたい	むずかりたくない
Potential	むずかれる	むずかれない
Passive	むずかられる	むずかられない
Causative	むずからせる	むずからせない
Causative passive	むずからせられるalso むずからされる	むずからせられないalso むずからされない
Volitional	むずかろう
Polite volitional	むずかりましょう
Imperative	むずかれ	むずかるな
Conditional	むずかれば	むずからなければ
Tara conditional	むずかったら	むずからなかったら

Meanings

godan verb (-ru), intransitive verb

fret; be peevish; be cross

usually written using kana alone

Describes a young child being irritable, fussy, or whiny, often because of tiredness, hunger, or discomfort. The subject is typically a baby or small child.

赤あかちゃんが眠ねむくてむずかっている。
The baby is fretting because she's sleepy.
うちの子こはお腹なかが空すくとすぐむずかる。
Our child gets peevish as soon as he's hungry.

See all 4 example sentences ›

Kanji

憤aroused, resent, be indignant

Related words

ぐずる
ぐずる also means to fuss or whine, but often implies dawdling or being uncooperative, while むずかる focuses on fretful, irritable mood, especially in infants.
すねる
すねる means to sulk or pout, often with a sense of willful displeasure, and is used for older children and adults, whereas むずかる is more about involuntary fussiness in young children.

Written forms

むずかるUsage97%
Usually written in kana; the kanji form 憤る is rare.
むつかるUsage3%
Older or less common reading variant.
むずがる
Voiced variant; common in everyday speech.
憤る
rarely-used kanji form
- むずかる
  Rare kanji form; the word is usually written in kana.
- むずがる
- むつかる

Etymology

The origin is uncertain. It may be related to the adjective むず痒い (irritating, itchy) or the mimetic word むずむず (feeling irritated or restless), but the exact derivation is unclear.