憚る

• 読み: はばかる
• ローマ字: habakaru
• 漢字の分解: 憚 (tan/habaka) — hesitate, hold back, be afraid of
• 発音: /ha.ba.ka.ɾɯ/

意味

To hesitate; to refrain out of deference; to have scruples; to be afraid of causing offence. Used when social or moral considerations cause one to hold back.

A Group 1 (godan) verb with a formal, literary tone. Expresses restraining oneself due to concern for propriety, others' feelings, or social norms. Often used in the negative form 憚ることなく (without reserve) or the conditional 憚られる (one ought to hesitate). N1 contexts include formal speeches, political commentary, and literary prose.

例文

1. 彼の面前でその話題に触れることを憚った。
2. 憚ることなく申し上げますが、その方針には賛成できません。
3. 上司の前では批判的な意見を言うことを憚る人も多い。

使い方ガイド

場面: social conventions, deference, etiquette, workplace

トーン: deferential

起源と歴史

From Old Japanese はばかる, related to the concept of spreading wide while also holding back. Original senses included both 'dominating an area' and 'exercising restraint.' The deference meaning has become overwhelmingly dominant in modern standard Japanese.

文化的背景

時代: Classical–Modern

世代: Adults

社会的背景: Educated