歴然

• 読み: れきぜん
• ローマ字: rekizen
• 漢字の分解: 歴 (reki) — successive, clear | 然 (zen) — evident, in that state
• 発音: /ɾe.ki.zeɴ/

意味

Clear; obvious; evident; unmistakable. Describes something so plainly visible or apparent that no reasonable doubt remains.

A taru-adjective and adverb. Common patterns include 歴然としている (it is evident), 歴然たる差 (an unmistakable difference), and 歴然と示す (to demonstrate clearly). Unlike simply 明らか (obvious), 歴然 carries a stronger sense of the fact being undeniably established — often with the subtext that something has been conclusively demonstrated by evidence or results. Frequently appears in academic writing, legal discourse, and analytical journalism.

例文

1. 実力の差が歴然としており、試合は序盤から勝負がついていた。
2. 両者の成果には歴然たる開きがあり、客観的な評価は自明だった。
3. 調査結果が歴然と示す通り、環境への負荷は年々増加している。

使い方ガイド

場面: academic writing, legal discourse, journalism, analytical commentary

トーン: conclusive

起源と歴史

Compound of 歴 (reki — successive, clear) and 然 (zen/nen — thus, evident). 歴 here carries the sense of things laid out in order, one after another — hence clearly visible. 然 is a common Chinese rhetorical suffix denoting the state described.

文化的背景

時代: Modern

世代: Adults

社会的背景: Educated