生いきがい

い

き

が

い

Common wordJLPTN2Freq.FrequencyTop 20,000

Meanings

reason for living; purpose in life; ikigai

A deeply personal sense of what makes life worth living; often used in discussions of well-being, motivation, and life satisfaction. The loanword 'ikigai' is increasingly recognized in English.

彼かれにとって家か族ぞくが生いきがいだ。
For him, his family is his reason for living.
定てい年ねん後ごに新あたらしい生いきがいを見みつけたい。
I want to find a new purpose in life after retirement.

See all 16 example sentences ›

Usage patterns

〈事こと〉に生いきがいを感かんじるto feel that something is one's purpose in life
彼かれは仕し事ごとに生いきがいを感かんじている。
He feels that his work is his purpose in life.
生いきがいを見みつけるto find one's purpose in life
退たい職しょく後ご、彼かの女じょはボランティア活かつ動どうに生いきがいを見みつけた。
After retiring, she found her purpose in life through volunteer work.
生いきがいを持もつto have a purpose in life
何なにか生いきがいを持もつことが大たい切せつだと思おもう。
I think it's important to have something to live for.

Kanji

生life, genuine, birth
甲armor, high (voice), A grade
斐beautiful, patterned

Related words

やりがいN2
やりがい is the sense of fulfillment from doing a specific task or activity, while 生きがい is the broader purpose that makes one's whole life worth living.
存そん在ざい意い義ぎ
存在意義 is a formal, philosophical term for the reason one exists, whereas 生きがい is a warmer, everyday word for what makes life feel worth living.

Written forms

生いきがいUsage73%
Common mixed kanji-kana spelling; the most frequent form in modern writing.
生いき甲斐がいUsage23%
Full kanji spelling; still seen but less common than 生きがい.
生いき甲斐がいUsage2%
search-only kanji form
Search-only kanji form; rarely used in practice.
いきがいUsage2%

Etymology

Compound of 生き (iki, 'living', continuative form of 生きる ikiru) + がい (gai, 'worth, effect', from 甲斐 kai). The kai→gai shift is due to rendaku (sequential voicing).