くじける

く

じ

け

る

Freq.FrequencyTop 50,000

Meanings

ichidan verb, intransitive verb

be disheartened; lose heart; be emotionally crushed

usually written using kana alone

Describes a person's spirit or motivation being broken by failure, difficulty, or discouragement. Often used with 心が or 気持ちが.

失しっ敗ぱい続つづきで心こころがくじけそうだ。
After a string of failures, I feel like I'm losing heart.

彼かれは一いち度どの失しっ敗ぱいでくじけるような人にん間げんではない。

He's not the kind of person who gets disheartened by a single failure.

ichidan verb, intransitive verb

be sprained

usually written using kana alone

Used for joints, especially the ankle. Less common than 捻挫する (ねんざする) in modern speech, but still understood.

段だん差さで足あし首くびがくじけてしまった。
I sprained my ankle on the step.

ichidan verb, intransitive verb

be snapped; be broken

usually written using kana alone

Physical breaking or snapping of a rigid object under pressure. Often implies bending or twisting force. Less common than 折れる (おれる) for general breakage.

強きょう風ふうで木きの枝えだがくじけた。
The tree branch snapped in the strong wind.

Written forms

くじけるUsage74%
Usually written in kana; the kanji spelling 挫ける is less common.
挫くじけるUsage26%
Kanji spelling; less common than kana. The kanji 挫 also appears in 挫折 (ざせつ, setback).

Kanji

挫crush, break, sprain

Similar words

挫ざ折せつ
挫折 is a noun/suru-verb meaning 'setback' or 'frustration', often used for plans or ambitions. くじける focuses on the emotional state of being disheartened.
捻ねん挫ざ
捻挫 is the standard medical term for a sprain. くじける is a more colloquial, slightly old-fashioned way to say the same thing.
折おれる
折れる is the common word for something long and thin breaking (e.g., a stick, a bone). くじける implies a snapping under twisting or bending stress, and is less frequent.

Etymology

Derived from the verb 挫く (くじく, to sprain, to dampen spirits) with the intransitive suffix 〜ける. The kanji 挫 means 'crush' or 'break'.