振り返る

• 読み: ふりかえる
• ローマ字: furikaeru
• 漢字の分解: 振 (furi) — swing, turn; 返 (kae) — return, reverse
• 発音: /ɸɯ.ɾi.ka.e.ɾɯ/

意味

To look back; to turn around; to reflect on; to review past events.

A Group 1 (godan) compound verb from 振る (swing/turn) + 返る (return). The physical sense is turning one's head or body to look behind. The figurative sense—reflecting on one's past, reviewing events, or reconsidering—is equally prominent. 人生を振り返る (reflecting on one's life) and 一年を振り返る (looking back on the year) are set phrases.

例文

1. 彼女は立ち止まり、ゆっくりと振り返って笑いかけた。
2. 定年を迎え、三十年のキャリアを振り返ると感慨深い。
3. 過去を振り返るだけでなく、未来を見据えることも大切だ。

使い方ガイド

場面: daily life, reflection, narrative, year-end reviews

トーン: neutral

起源と歴史

Compound of 振る (to swing/turn) + 返る (to return, reverse). The image is of swinging the body or head back to face what was left behind. The metaphorical use of looking back on the past is attested from the Edo period and is now firmly established.

文化的背景

時代: Classical–Modern

世代: All ages

社会的背景: Universal