微塵

• 読み: みじん
• ローマ字: mijin
• 漢字の分解: 微 (bi/mi) — minute, tiny; 塵 (jin/chiri) — dust, particle
• 発音: /mi.dʑiɴ/

意味

A tiny particle; the smallest possible amount. Most commonly used in negative constructions to mean 'not in the slightest' or 'not at all.'

Most frequently encountered in the expression 微塵も〜ない ('not in the slightest'), which strongly denies the existence of something. Also appears in 微塵に砕ける ('to shatter into tiny fragments'). The word carries a dramatic, emphatic quality typical of literary and formal registers, rarely used in casual speech.

例文

1. 彼は反省している様子が微塵もなかった。
2. その計画には成功の可能性が微塵も感じられない。
3. 高い場所から落ちた花瓶は微塵に砕け散った。

使い方ガイド

場面: literature, formal speech, emphatic denial

トーン: emphatic

起源と歴史

From 微 (bi/mi) meaning 'minute, tiny' and 塵 (jin/chiri) meaning 'dust, particle.' Together they describe a particle so small it is like dust, conveying extreme minuteness.

文化的背景

時代: Classical-Modern

世代: Adults

社会的背景: Educated