Japanese

める

かたをすくめる
Meaning: to shrug one's shoulders
Part of Speech: Verb

Listen to pronunciation

Show inflections Hide inflections

Verb inflections

Form Affirmative Negative
Present 肩を竦める 肩を竦めない
Polite 肩を竦めます 肩を竦めません
Past 肩を竦めた 肩を竦めなかった
Polite + Past 肩を竦めました 肩を竦めませんでした
Te-form 肩を竦めて 肩を竦めなくて
Potential 肩を竦められる 肩を竦められない
Passive 肩を竦められる 肩を竦められない
Causative 肩を竦めさせる 肩を竦めさせない
Imperative 肩を竦めろ 肩を竦めるな

Handwriting

肩
を
竦
め
る

Example

He just shrugged his shoulders upon hearing the irony.

Usage Notes

A gesture indicating amazement, resignation, or feeling that something is beyond one's control.

Sottaku

About Sottaku

Sottaku is an app for learning Chinese, Japanese, Korean, English, Spanish, French, German, and Italian with a strong focus on SRS. It includes automatic flashcard creation for hundreds of thousands of words, grammar breakdowns in example sentences, language-specific study packs where available, adaptive quizzes, mobile apps, a browser extension, and community features. Give it a try now! All learning content is free with no limits on flashcards or study time.

Sottaku is built to match the habits of successful learners. By using Sottaku, you will naturally learn in the most efficient way possible, as proven by countless success stories in the language learning community.

Free Forever

Access all grammar guides, quizzes, and flashcards without paying a cent. Quality education should be accessible to everyone.

Smart SRS System

Our flashcard system uses the FSRS algorithm (also used in Anki) to optimize your review schedule and maximize retention.

Comprehensive Content

From hanzi, kana, hangul, and European vocabulary basics to grammar and reading practice where available, we have lessons for every level. Practice with quizzes tailored to your skill.

Community Chat

Ask level-appropriate questions and get help from the community. Learn together with fellow learners across all 8 supported languages.