ほったらかし

ほ

っ

た

ら

か

し

Freq.FrequencyTop 20,000

Meanings

1

noun

neglecting; leaving alone; abandoning

usually written using kana alone

Describes the state of leaving something or someone unattended, often with a nuance of irresponsibility or neglect. Commonly used in the phrase ほったらかしにする.

仕し事ごとをほったらかしにし

て

遊あそ

び

に

行い

っ

た

。

He left his work undone and went out to play.

子こ供どもをほったらかしにする親おやが増ふえている。

There are more parents who neglect their children.

Usage patterns

〈物もの〉〉が放ほったらかしになるfor something to end up neglected/left unattended
庭にわの花はなが放ほったらかしになっている。
The flowers in the garden have been left neglected.
〈物もの〉〉は放ほったらかしだX is (in a state of) neglect
宿しゅく題だいは結けっ局きょく放ほったらかしだった。
In the end, the homework was just left neglected.

Expressions

ほったらかしにするneglect; leave alone; leave unattended

Kanji

放set free, release, fire

Related words

放ほう置ちN1
放置 is a formal, often official term for leaving something unattended, while ほったらかし is colloquial and implies careless neglect.
ほっとく
ほっとく is the casual verb meaning 'to leave alone/neglect', whereas ほったらかし is the noun describing the resulting neglected state.
放ほうりっぱなし
放りっぱなし emphasizes something being thrown down and left as-is, while ほったらかし more broadly covers neglecting people, tasks, or things.

Don't confuse with

放ほうり出だすN1
放り出す shares the 放 kanji with ほったらかし but means 'to throw out/expel', an active action rather than passive neglect.

Written forms

ほったらかしUsage77%
Usually written in kana; the kanji form 放ったらかし is rare.
放ほったらかしUsage21%
Kanji spelling is uncommon; learners should use the kana form.
ホッタラカシUsage2%

Etymology

The noun is derived from ほったらかす “leave unattended, neglect,” an expressive colloquial formation related to 放る “throw aside; leave alone.”