生いかす

い

か

す

Common wordJLPTN2Freq.FrequencyTop 5,000

生かす · godan verb (-su)

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

Pairs with生きる

Meanings

godan verb (-su), transitive verb

make use of; put to good use; leverage

Using skills, experience, or resources effectively; often written 活かす in this sense.

留りゅう学がくの経けい験けんを仕し事ごとに活いかしたい。
I want to put my study-abroad experience to good use in my job.
彼かれは自じ分ぶんの才さい能のうを十じゅう分ぶんに活いかせなかった。
He couldn't fully leverage his talents.

godan verb (-su), transitive verb

let live; keep alive

Only when written 生かす

Allowing someone or something to stay alive; often used with 生かす.

捕つかまえた虫むしを逃にがさずに生いかしておく。
I keep the caught insect alive without releasing it.
彼かれは敵てきを生いかして帰かえした。
He let the enemy live and go back.

godan verb (-su), transitive verb

revive; resuscitate; bring back to life

Only when written 生かす

Bringing someone back from near death or a lifeless state; restricted to 生かす.

医い者しゃは心しん停てい止しの患かん者じゃを生いかすために懸けん命めいに処しょ置ちした。
The doctor worked hard to revive the cardiac-arrest patient.

godan verb (-su), transitive verb

restore (deleted text); stet

Proofreading term: to keep or restore a previously deleted passage; can use either kanji.

編へん集しゅう者しゃは削さく除じょした段だん落らくを生いかすことにした。
The editor decided to restore the deleted paragraph.

See all 212 example sentences ›

Usage patterns

〈物もの〉を生いかして〈動どう詞し〉to make use of ~ in order to do ~
彼かれは留りゅう学がく経けい験けんを生いかして翻ほん訳やくの仕し事ごとをしている。
He makes use of his study-abroad experience to work as a translator.
〈人ひと〉の命いのちを生いかすto spare/keep someone's life
医い者しゃは患かん者じゃの命いのちを生いかすために手しゅ術じゅつをした。
The doctor performed surgery to save the patient's life.
〈物もの〉をそのまま生いかすto leave (a passage, phrase) as is; to stet
校こう正せいでは前まえの段だん落らくをそのまま生いかしてください。
In the proofreading, please leave the previous paragraph as it was.

Expressions

死し者しゃを生いかすrevive the dead
経けい験けんを生いかすdraw on one's experience; make good use of one's experience
大だいの虫むしを生いかして小しょうの虫むしを殺ころすsacrifice a small thing to save a greater one; lose a leg to save one's life
大だいの虫むしを生いかして小しょうの虫むしを殺ころせsacrifice a small thing to save a great one; lose a leg to save one's life
小しょうの虫むしを殺ころして大だいの虫むしを生いかすsacrifice a small thing to save a great one; lose a leg to save one's life

Kanji

生life, genuine, birth
活lively, resuscitation, being helped

Transitive / intransitive

生いきるN4sense 2
生きる is the intransitive 'to live', while 生かす is its transitive counterpart meaning 'to let/make live' or 'to keep alive'.

Related words

活かつ用ようN3sense 1
活用する is the more formal, business-like word for putting a resource or skill to effective use, while 生かす works in both formal and everyday contexts and adds a sense of 'making the most of' something.
用もちいるN3sense 1
用いる simply means 'to use' something for a purpose, whereas 生かす specifically implies exploiting something's value or potential to good effect.
救すくうN3sense 2
救う means 'to save' someone from danger or death, while 生かす focuses on the resulting state of letting or keeping that person alive.
利きかせる
生かす means to make good use of something's inherent qualities, while 利かせる more broadly means to actively apply or bring out an effect, often in fixed set phrases.
役やく立だてる
生かす means to make the most of something like experience or skill for good effect, similar to 役立てる but with a more personal, growth-oriented nuance.

Opposites

殺ころすN3sense 2
殺す 'to kill' is the direct opposite of 生かす in its sense of letting or keeping something alive.

Don't confuse with

生いけるN1sense 2
生ける looks and sounds almost identical to 生かす but means 'to arrange flowers' or, in a narrower sense, 'to keep alive', while 生かす covers a much broader range of uses including reviving and utilizing.

Written forms

生いかすUsage74%
Primary kanji spelling; used for all senses, especially 'let live', 'revive', and 'restore'.
活いかすUsage21%
Common for 'make use of' or 'leverage'; emphasizes bringing something to life or utilizing it effectively.
いかすUsage5%
Kana spelling is acceptable in casual writing, especially when the intended kanji nuance is not important.

Etymology

Causative/transitive form of 生きる (いきる, 'to live'), literally 'to make live'. The kanji 生 relates to life, while 活 adds a nuance of activity and utilization.