懸けん命めい

け

ん

め

い

Common wordFreq.FrequencyTop 20,000

Meanings

1

na-adjective, noun

eager; earnest; with utmost effort

Describes doing something with all one's might, often in a desperate or single-minded way. Most frequently used as 懸命に + verb.

彼かれは

懸けん

命めい

に

走はし

っ

た

。

He ran with all his might.

懸けん命めいの努ど力りょくが実みのった。

Their desperate efforts paid off.

Usage patterns

懸けん命めいに〈動どう詞し〉to do something with all one's might
彼かれは懸けん命めいに走はしった。
He ran with all his might.
懸けん命めいの〈事こと〉an earnest, all-out (effort/attempt)
彼かの女じょの懸けん命めいの努ど力りょくが認みとめられた。
Her earnest efforts were recognized.
〈人ひと〉が懸けん命めいになるfor someone to become desperate/earnest (about doing something)
母ははは子こ供どもを助たすけようと懸けん命めいになった。
The mother became desperate to save her child.

Kanji

懸state of suspension, hang, depend
命fate, command, decree

Related words

一いっ生しょう懸けん命めいN4
一生懸命 is the more common, slightly stronger everyday word for giving one's all, while 懸命 is a bit more formal and often literary.
必ひっ死しN3
必死 carries a life-or-death, cornered desperation, while 懸命 simply describes earnest, wholehearted effort.
真しん剣けんN3
真剣 emphasizes serious, focused attitude toward a task, whereas 懸命 emphasizes putting in maximum physical or mental effort.
躍やっ起き
懸命 describes doing one's best with steady, dedicated effort, whereas 躍起 carries a more worked-up, frantic or excitable nuance.

Don't confuse with

賢けん明めいN1
賢明 (also read けんめい) means 'wise, sensible' and is unrelated in meaning to 懸命 'earnest effort', despite sounding identical.

Word family

一いっ生しょう懸けん命めいN4
with all one's might; very hard; eagerly
一いっ所しょ懸けん命めい
with all one's might; desperately; very hard · devoting oneself to defending one's territory (of a samurai)

Written forms

懸けん命めいUsage95%
Standard kanji spelling; commonly used in the adverbial form 懸命に.
けんめいUsage5%
ケンメイUsage<1%

Etymology

From Middle Chinese-derived elements 懸 (hang, risk) and 命 (life), originally meaning to risk one's life. The modern sense of earnest effort developed from this idea of putting everything on the line.