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見当たる (みあたる) Japanese meaning | Kotomora

見み当あたる

み

あ

た

る

Common wordJLPTN1

Meanings

1

godan verb (-ru), intransitive verb

be found; be located; turn up

Intransitive verb used when something one is looking for is found or located, often in negative or question forms to express that it cannot be found.

鍵かぎがどこにも見み当あたらない。
The key is nowhere to be found.
探さがしていた本ほんがやっと見み当あ

たっ

た

。

The book I was looking for finally turned up.

Written forms

見み当あたるUsage67%
Standard kanji spelling; high-frequency news and common usage.
見みあたるUsage19%
Variant with okurigana あ instead of 当; less common but still encountered.
見み当あたるUsage12%
Older or abbreviated okurigana variant; rarely used in modern writing.
みあたるUsage3%

Kanji

見see, hopes, chances
当hit, right, appropriate

Similar words

見みつかる
見つかる is the more common and general word for 'be found' or 'be discovered'. 見当たる often implies a visual search and is frequently used in negative contexts.

Etymology

Compound of 見 (mi, 'see') and 当たる (ataru, 'hit, be right'). The combination conveys the idea of 'seeing and hitting upon' something, i.e., finding it.