抜ぬけ目めない

抜け目ない · i-adjective

Form	Positive	Negative
Dictionary	抜ぬけ目めない	抜ぬけ目めなくない
Polite	抜ぬけ目めないです	抜ぬけ目めなくないですalso 抜ぬけ目めなくありません
Past polite	抜ぬけ目めなかったです	抜ぬけ目めなくなかったですalso 抜ぬけ目めなくありませんでした
Past	抜ぬけ目めなかった	抜ぬけ目めなくなかった
Te-form	抜ぬけ目めなくて	抜ぬけ目めなくなくて
Adverbial	抜ぬけ目めなく
Conditional	抜ぬけ目めなければ	抜ぬけ目めなくなければ
Tara conditional	抜ぬけ目めなかったら	抜ぬけ目めなくなかったら

Meanings

i-adjective

shrewd; astute; cunning; alert

idiomatic expression

Describes a person who is sharp, misses no opportunity, and is often business-savvy or socially perceptive. Can carry a slightly negative nuance of being calculating.

彼かれは抜ぬけ目めない商しょう人にんだ。
He is a shrewd merchant.
抜ぬけ目めない人ひとは、そういうチャンスを見み逃のがさない。
A sharp person doesn't miss that kind of chance.

See all 8 example sentences ›

Kanji

抜slip out, extract, pull out
目eye, class, look
無nothingness, none, ain't

Related words

すばしっこいN1
抜け目ない describes someone shrewd who never misses a chance, close to the mental-sharpness sense of すばしっこい but without the physical-quickness meaning.
がっちりN1
抜け目ない describes someone who is sharp and misses no opportunity for gain, close to がっちり's sense of a shrewd, calculating person.
狡ずる賢がしこいN1
抜け目ない describes shrewdness that misses no opportunity and is often neutral or even admiring, unlike the negative judgment carried by ずる賢い.
悪わる賢がしこいN1
抜け目ない describes someone shrewd who never misses an advantage, without the moral condemnation that 悪賢い carries.

Opposites

間ま抜ぬけN1
抜け目ない describes someone sharp and shrewd who never misses a trick, the direct opposite of 間抜け, who misses the obvious.

Written forms

抜ぬけ目めない
Standard kanji spelling.
抜ぬけ目め無ない
Alternate kanji spelling using 無い; less common but still seen.

Etymology

From 抜け目 (a gap, oversight) + ない (not), literally 'without oversight'. The exact historical derivation is uncertain, but the phrase has been used idiomatically since at least the Edo period.