摘む

• Reading: つむ
• Romaji: tsumu
• Kanji breakdown: 摘 (teki/tsu) — pluck, pick, summarize
• Pronunciation: /tsɯ.mɯ/

Meaning

To pluck; to pick; to trim. Removing something by pinching with the fingers.

A Group 1 (godan) transitive verb. Used for delicate picking actions: 花を摘む (to pick flowers), 茶を摘む (to pick tea leaves), 芽を摘む (to nip buds — also used figuratively for crushing potential). Not to be confused with 積む (tsumu, to stack or accumulate) or つまむ (to pinch or pick up with fingers).

Examples

1. 庭のバラを摘んで部屋に飾った。 I picked roses from the garden and put them in the room.
2. 春になると山で山菜を摘むのが楽しみだ。 When spring comes, I look forward to picking wild plants in the mountains.
3. 余分な芽を摘んでトマトの成長を促した。 I pinched off the extra buds to help the tomatoes grow.

Usage Guide

Context: gardening, nature, agriculture

Tone: gentle

Origin & History

From the kanji 摘 (teki, to pluck or pick). The native reading tsumu originally described the action of picking plants. The hand radical 扌 reflects the manual action of pinching and pulling.

Cultural Context

Era: Classical

Generation: All ages

Social background: Universal