ぼかす

ぼ

か

す

Common wordJLPTN1Freq.FrequencyTop 100,000

ぼかす · godan verb (-su)

Form	Positive	Negative
Dictionary	ぼかす	ぼかさない
Polite	ぼかします	ぼかしません
Past polite	ぼかしました	ぼかしませんでした
Past	ぼかした	ぼかさなかった
Te-form	ぼかして	ぼかさないで
Desire	ぼかしたい	ぼかしたくない
Potential	ぼかせる	ぼかせない
Passive	ぼかされる	ぼかされない
Causative	ぼかさせる	ぼかさせない
Causative passive	ぼかさせられる	ぼかさせられない
Volitional	ぼかそう
Polite volitional	ぼかしましょう
Imperative	ぼかせ	ぼかすな
Conditional	ぼかせば	ぼかさなければ
Tara conditional	ぼかしたら	ぼかさなかったら

Pairs withぼける

Meanings

godan verb (-su), transitive verb

blur; shade off; gradate

usually written using kana alone

Used for making edges, colors, or images less sharp, often in art, photography, or digital editing.

写しゃ真しんの背はい景けいをぼかして人じん物ぶつを目め立だたせる。
Blur the background of the photo to make the person stand out.
絵えの具ぐをぼかして空そらのグラデーションを描えがく。
Shade off the paints to create a gradient of the sky.

godan verb (-su), transitive verb

obscure; make ambiguous; fudge

usually written using kana alone

Used for making statements, meanings, or boundaries unclear or vague, often deliberately.

彼かれは都つ合ごうが悪わるくなると話はなしをぼかす。
He fudges the story when it becomes inconvenient for him.
責せき任にんの所しょ在ざいをぼかしてはいけない。
You must not obscure where the responsibility lies.

See all 25 example sentences ›

Usage patterns

背はい景けいをぼかすto blur the background (e.g. in a photo)
ポートレートでは背はい景けいをぼかすと人じん物ぶつが際きわ立だつ。
Blurring the background in a portrait makes the subject stand out.
表ひょう現げんをぼかすto make an expression or wording deliberately vague
彼かれは批ひ判はんを避さけるため表ひょう現げんをぼかして答こたえた。
He answered with vague wording to avoid criticism.
輪りん郭かくをぼかすto soften/blur the outline of something
画が像ぞうの輪りん郭かくをぼかして柔やわらかい印いん象しょうにした。
I blurred the outline of the image to give it a softer look.
論ろん点てんをぼかすto obscure the point of an argument or discussion
彼かれは質しつ問もんに対たいして論ろん点てんをぼかして答こたえた。
He obscured the point when responding to the question.
色いろをぼかすto gradate or blend colors together
水すい彩さい画がでは色いろをぼかすときれいなグラデーションができる。
In watercolor painting, blending the colors creates a beautiful gradation.

Kanji

暈halo, corona, fade

Transitive / intransitive

ぼけるN1sense 1
暈ける is the intransitive partner meaning to become blurred or faded, while ぼかす is transitive and means to blur something deliberately.

Related words

ぼやけるN1sense 1
ぼやける is intransitive, describing something becoming blurred on its own, while ぼかす is transitive and means to deliberately blur something.
にじむN1sense 1
にじむ is intransitive and describes ink or color bleeding or spreading unintentionally, whereas ぼかす is a controlled, deliberate action.
濁にごすN1sense 2
濁す is used specifically for deliberately leaving words or answers vague (as in 言葉を濁す), a narrower use than the broader obscuring sense of ぼかす.

Don't confuse with

ぼやくN1
ぼやく sounds similar to ぼかす but means to grumble or complain, unrelated to blurring or obscuring.

Word family

ぼかし
blurring; blur; gradient; shading · bokashi composting; fermented composting

Written forms

ぼかすUsage99%
Usually written in kana; the kanji forms 暈す and 暈かす are rare.
暈ぼかすUsage1%
rarely-used kanji form
Rare kanji form; the kana spelling is strongly preferred.
暈ぼかす
rarely-used kanji form
Rare kanji form; the kana spelling is strongly preferred.

Etymology

Derived from the adjective ぼける (to become dim or blurred) with the transitive suffix す. The kanji 暈 is associated with 'halo' or 'blur', but the word is now almost always written in kana.