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汚す (よごす, yogosu) Japanese meaning: make dirty | Kotomora
Common word› JLPT N3 › Freq. Frequency Top 20,000 Conjugation 汚す · godan verb (-su)
Form Positive Negative Dictionary 汚よご す 汚よご さない Polite 汚よご します 汚よご しません Past polite 汚よご しました 汚よご しませんでした Past 汚よご した 汚よご さなかった Te-form 汚よご して 汚よご さないで Desire 汚よご したい 汚よご したくない Potential 汚よご せる 汚よご せない Passive 汚よご される 汚よご されない Causative 汚よご させる 汚よご させない Causative passive 汚よご させられる 汚よご させられない Volitional 汚よご そう Polite volitional 汚よご しましょう Imperative 汚よご せ 汚よご すな Conditional 汚よご せば 汚よご さなければ Tara conditional 汚よご したら 汚よご さなかったら
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I got my clothes dirty with mud.
Factory wastewater polluted the river.
Usage patterns 名な を 汚よご す to disgrace one's name
He disgraced his family's name with the scandal.
名めい 誉よ を 汚よご す to tarnish one's honor
That remark was an act that tarnished his honor.
環かん 境きょう を 汚よご す to pollute the environment
The factory's wastewater is polluting the river's environment.
空くう 気き を 汚よご す to pollute the air
Car exhaust is polluting the city's air.
Expressions 手て を 汚よご す dirty one's hands; get one's hands dirty 服ふく を 汚よご す soil one's clothes; get one's clothes dirty Kanji 汚 dirty, pollute, disgrace Transitive / intransitive 汚す is transitive ('to make something dirty'), while 汚れる is its intransitive counterpart ('to get dirty') describing the state without an agent.
汚す (けがす) is transitive for figuratively defiling something, while 汚れる (けがれる) is its intransitive counterpart meaning 'to become defiled' or 'to be violated'.
Related words 汚染する is a formal term for environmental or chemical pollution, while 汚す is the everyday verb for making something dirty in general.
貶める means to deliberately demean or belittle someone's reputation, while 汚す (けがす) refers more broadly to sullying honor or purity, often through one's own conduct.
汚す is the transitive verb meaning 'to make something dirty', while 汚い simply describes something as being dirty.
Opposites 清める means to purify or cleanse, the direct opposite of 汚す's figurative sense of defiling someone's honor or something sacred.
汚す means to make something dirty, the opposite result of 磨く, which makes something clean and shiny.
汚す means to dirty or soil something, the direct opposite of 洗う meaning to clean it.
Don't confuse with 汚い is an adjective meaning 'dirty', whereas 汚す is the transitive verb meaning 'to make dirty' — learners often mix up the part of speech.
汚す means to make something dirty in a general sense, while 濁す specifically refers to making a liquid turbid or a statement unclear.
Word family soiling; making dirty; polluting · shame; disgrace; dishonor · chopped fish, shellfish or vegetables dressed with sauce
disgrace; shame
tantalizing sample; small taste
disgrace; dishonor
Etymology The kanji 汚 carries the core meaning of 'dirty' or 'defile'. The reading よごす is the standard transitive form. The reading けがす is older and more literary, often associated with spiritual or moral defilement.
拭ふ く
N3
汚す means to make something dirty, the opposite of 拭く, which means to wipe something clean or dry.
食た べ 汚よご す
eat messily; make a mess while eating
けがす
Usage 5%
Kana spelling for the figurative sense; common when the rare kanji 穢す is avoided.
穢けが す Usage 3%
Rare kanji form used mainly for the figurative sense of defilement or dishonor, read けがす.