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手を焼く (てをやく, teoyaku) Japanese meaning | Kotomora
JLPT N1 › Conjugation 手を焼く · godan verb (-ku)
Form Positive Negative Dictionary 手て を 焼や く 手て を 焼や かない Polite 手て を 焼や きます 手て を 焼や きません Past polite 手て を 焼や きました 手て を 焼や きませんでした Past 手て を 焼や いた 手て を 焼や かなかった Te-form 手て を 焼や いて 手て を 焼や かないで Desire 手て を 焼や きたい 手て を 焼や きたくない Potential 手て を 焼や ける 手て を 焼や けない Passive 手て を 焼や かれる 手て を 焼や かれない Causative 手て を 焼や かせる 手て を 焼や かせない Causative passive 手て を 焼や かせられる also 手て を 焼や かされる 手て を 焼や かせられない also 手て を 焼や かされない Volitional 手て を 焼や こう Polite volitional 手て を 焼や きましょう Imperative 手て を 焼や け 手て を 焼や くな Conditional 手て を 焼や けば 手て を 焼や かなければ Tara conditional 手て を 焼や いたら 手て を 焼や かなかったら
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や
い
て
いる
。
I'm at a loss with his selfishness.
I had difficulty dealing with this problem.
Related words 手こずる is a near-synonym meaning to have trouble managing someone or something, almost interchangeable with 手を焼く but slightly more casual in tone.
困る is a general verb for being troubled or in a fix, while 手を焼く specifically implies being at a loss about how to handle a difficult person or situation.
持て余す emphasizes being unable to manage an excess or burden (like free time or energy), whereas 手を焼く focuses on the difficulty of dealing with a troublesome person or matter.
Don't confuse with 手を打つ shares the same 手を~ form but means to strike a deal or take a measure, unlike 手を焼く which means to be troubled by something.
手を切る (to cut ties) and 手を焼く (to have a hard time dealing with someone/something) share the 手を〜 pattern but mean completely different things.
手を焼く shares the 手を construction but means to have trouble handling something, unlike 手を引く's meaning of withdrawing from an activity.
Etymology The expression literally means 'to burn one's hands,' metaphorically suggesting that dealing with something is so troublesome it feels like getting burned. The exact origin is uncertain, but it is a common idiomatic phrase.
N2
手を焼く means to have trouble or difficulty handling something, unlike 手を抜く, which means to slack off on effort.
