結句

• Reading: けっく
• Romaji: kekku
• Kanji breakdown: 結 (ketsu/musubi) — conclude, tie; 句 (ku) — phrase, verse
• Pronunciation: /kek.kɯ/

Meaning

After all; in the end; ultimately. Also: the final verse of a poem, particularly the closing lines of a waka.

A noun with two distinct registers. In everyday and literary prose, 結句 functions as an adverb meaning 'after all' or 'in the final analysis,' often conveying resignation or inevitability. In classical poetry, it denotes the concluding verse of a waka (短歌), where the poet's central emotion is distilled.

Examples

1. 長い議論の末、結句もとの案に戻ることになってしまった。 After a long debate, they ultimately ended up going back to the original proposal.
2. 和歌の結句には、詠み手の心情が最も凝縮されていると言われる。 It is said that the final verse of a waka is where the poet's emotions are most intensely distilled.
3. 彼は結句、生まれ育った故郷を離れることができなかった。 In the end, he was unable to leave the hometown where he was born and raised.

Usage Guide

Context: classical poetry, literature, rhetoric, formal writing

Tone: neutral

Origin & History

Compound of 結 (ketsu, concluding/tying together) and 句 (ku, phrase/verse). In classical poetics, 句 denoted a unit of verse, so 結句 literally means 'the tying verse' — the phrase that brings a poem to closure.

Cultural Context

Era: Classical–Modern

Generation: Adults

Social background: Educated