Japanese

べる

かたをならべる
Meaning: to stand shoulder to shoulder; to be equal to; to rival
Part of Speech: Verb, Idiom

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Verb inflections

Form Affirmative Negative
Present 肩を並べる 肩を並べない
Polite 肩を並べます 肩を並べません
Past 肩を並べた 肩を並べなかった
Polite + Past 肩を並べました 肩を並べませんでした
Te-form 肩を並べて 肩を並べなくて
Potential 肩を並べられる 肩を並べられない
Passive 肩を並べられる 肩を並べられない
Causative 肩を並べさせる 肩を並べさせない
Imperative 肩を並べろ 肩を並べるな

Handwriting

肩
を
並
べ
る

Example

After much effort, he finally reached the point where he could stand shoulder to shoulder with the world champion.

Usage Notes

Literally means standing side by side, but more commonly used idiomatically to describe reaching the same level of ability, status, or power as someone else.

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