繕う

• 読み: つくろう
• ローマ字: tsukurou
• 漢字の分解: 繕 (zen/tsukuro) — to mend, to repair; from 糸 (thread) + phonetic 善
• 発音: /tsɯ.kɯ.ɾo.ɯ/

意味

To mend; to repair; to patch up; to smooth over a situation; to maintain appearances.

A Group 1 (godan) verb. 繕う serves both for physical repairs — mending clothes or objects — and figurative ones — smoothing over a relationship or keeping up a surface appearance of normality. The figurative usage often carries a slightly deceptive nuance, suggesting the repair is cosmetic rather than genuine.

例文

1. 古い着物を丁寧に繕って大切に保管した。
2. 体裁を繕うために嘘をついてしまった。
3. ひびが入った関係を繕うことは容易ではなかった。

使い方ガイド

場面: household, social relationships, appearances

トーン: neutral

起源と歴史

From Old Japanese, derived from 繕 (zhen in Chinese), meaning to mend or repair. The kanji depicts thread (糸) combined with a phonetic component, evoking stitching something back together.

文化的背景

時代: Classical-Modern

世代: Adults

社会的背景: Universal