ほったらかし

ほ

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し

Freq.FrequencyTop 20,000

Meanings

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.

See all 7 example sentences ›

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.”