Common word› JLPT N1 › Freq. Frequency Top 10,000 Conjugation 滅ぼす · godan verb (-su)
Form Positive Negative Dictionary 滅ほろ ぼす 滅ほろ ぼさない Polite 滅ほろ ぼします 滅ほろ ぼしません Past polite 滅ほろ ぼしました 滅ほろ ぼしませんでした Past 滅ほろ ぼした 滅ほろ ぼさなかった Te-form 滅ほろ ぼして 滅ほろ ぼさないで Desire 滅ほろ ぼしたい 滅ほろ ぼしたくない Potential 滅ほろ ぼせる 滅ほろ ぼせない Passive 滅ほろ ぼされる 滅ほろ ぼされない Causative 滅ほろ ぼさせる 滅ほろ ぼさせない Causative passive 滅ほろ ぼさせられる 滅ほろ ぼさせられない Volitional 滅ほろ ぼそう Polite volitional 滅ほろ ぼしましょう Imperative 滅ほろ ぼせ 滅ほろ ぼすな Conditional 滅ほろ ぼせば 滅ほろ ぼさなければ Tara conditional 滅ほろ ぼしたら 滅ほろ ぼさなかったら
Pairs with 滅びる › Usage patterns 〈 国くに 〉 を 滅ほろ ぼす to destroy/overthrow a country or dynasty
Qin destroyed the surrounding states and unified China.
身み を 滅ほろ ぼす to ruin oneself (through vice, addiction, etc.)
He ruined himself through drinking and gambling.
〈 家いえ 〉 を 滅ほろ ぼす to bring ruin upon a family or house (lineage)
That betrayal became the cause of the clan's destruction.
Kanji 滅 destroy, ruin, overthrow 亡 deceased, the late, dying Transitive / intransitive 滅びる is the intransitive counterpart, describing a country or thing perishing on its own, while 滅ぼす is the transitive act of causing that destruction.
滅ぶ is a literary intransitive form meaning to perish, whereas 滅ぼす is the transitive verb meaning to bring about that ruin.
Related words 倒す focuses on defeating or overthrowing a specific power (a government, a rival), while 滅ぼす stresses total, often historical, annihilation.
潰す is used for bankrupting or crushing something like a business, while 滅ぼす implies a larger-scale, often irreversible destruction such as a nation or dynasty.
壊す usually means to physically break an object, while 滅ぼす refers to the complete downfall of an abstract or large-scale entity like a country.
滅ぼす means 'to destroy' or 'to wipe out' a group or nation entirely, while 討つ focuses on the act of defeating or killing a specific enemy or target.
Opposites 興す means to found or establish (a country, a business), the opposite of 滅ぼす , which means to destroy it.
Word family atonement; expiation; making amends
destroy; annihilate; wipe out
attack and destroy; overthrow by force
destroy; annihilate; wipe out
Written forms 滅ほろ ぼす Usage 77%
Standard kanji spelling; high priority in news and common usage.
ほろぼす Usage 10%
亡ほろ ぼす Usage 8%
Uncommon variant; 滅ぼす is strongly preferred.
滅ほろぼ す Usage 4%
search-only kanji form
Search-only form; not used in modern writing.
亡ほろぼ す Usage 2%
search-only kanji form
Search-only form; not used in modern writing.
Etymology Derived from the intransitive verb 滅びる (ほろびる ) via the transitive suffix す . The kanji 滅 carries the meaning of 'destroy' or 'perish'.
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