抜ける

• Reading: ぬける
• Romaji: nukeru
• Kanji breakdown: 抜 (nuku/batsu) — come out, fall out, escape
• Pronunciation: /nɯ.ke.ɾɯ/

Meaning

To come out; to fall out; to slip through. Also means to be missing or omitted.

A Group 2 (ichidan) intransitive verb, the intransitive pair of 抜く. Describes things coming out on their own: hair falling out (髪が抜ける), escaping from a place (トンネルを抜ける), or something being missing (名前が抜けている). Also used figuratively for losing energy or motivation (力が抜ける).

Examples

1. 季節の変わり目に髪がたくさん抜ける。 A lot of hair falls out when the seasons change.
2. このトンネルを抜けると海が見える。 Once you get through this tunnel, you can see the ocean.
3. リストから私の名前が抜けていた。 My name was missing from the list.

Usage Guide

Context: daily life, health, description

Tone: neutral

Origin & History

Derived from 抜く (nuku) with the ichidan ending -ける, forming the intransitive counterpart. The kanji 抜 combines 手 (hand) and 犮 (to pull).

Cultural Context

Era: Ancient

Generation: All ages

Social background: Universal