撲滅

• 読み: ぼくめつ
• ローマ字: bokumetsu
• 漢字の分解: 撲 (boku) — strike, beat down; 滅 (metsu) — destroy, extinguish
• 発音: /bo.kɯ.me.tsɯ/

意味

Eradication; extermination; stamping out. The complete elimination of something harmful, such as a disease, crime, or social evil.

A compound of 撲 (to strike, beat down) and 滅 (to destroy, annihilate). 撲滅 is used in strong, often official or campaign-style language: 貧困の撲滅 (eradication of poverty), 感染症撲滅 (elimination of infectious disease), 犯罪撲滅 (stamping out crime). The term implies thoroughness — not just reduction but complete elimination. It frequently appears in the names of public campaigns and NGO initiatives. Its strength makes it less suited to everyday conversational use.

例文

1. 国連は世界的な貧困の撲滅を持続可能な開発目標の中心課題として掲げている。
2. 感染症の撲滅に向けて、ワクチン接種プログラムが世界百か国以上で展開された。
3. この地域では暴力団の撲滅を目指す官民合同のキャンペーンが長年にわたって続けられている。

使い方ガイド

場面: public health, crime prevention, social campaigns, international development, policy

トーン: strong, official

起源と歴史

Sino-Japanese compound: 撲 (boku — to hit, strike) + 滅 (metsu — to destroy, extinguish). 撲 carries the image of beating something down, and 滅 implies complete annihilation. Together they convey an aggressive, thorough elimination. The term entered wide use in Meiji-era reform and public health campaigns.

文化的背景

時代: Meiji-Modern

世代: Adult

社会的背景: Educated