生かす (いかす, ikasu) Japanese meaning: make use of | Kotomora

生いかす

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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

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.

生いかす

Meanings

Usage patterns

Expressions