切る

Japanese

Kanji in this term
切
き Grade: 2
kun'yomi

Alternative spellings
斬る 伐る 截る

Etymology

⟨ki₁ru⟩ → */kjiru/ → /kiru/

From Old Japanese, from Proto-Japonic *kiru. Cognate with Miyako 切 (きぃー, ksïï), Okinawan 切ーん (ちーん, chīn), Yaeyama 切すん (きぃすん, kïsun).

Pronunciation

• (Tokyo) きる [kíꜜrù] (Atamadaka – [1])
• (Keihan) きる [kìrú] (Heiban – [0])
• IPA^(key): [kʲiɾɯ̟]

• Tokyo pitch accent of conjugated forms of 切る

Plain	切る	きる	[kíꜜrù]
Conjunctive	切って	きって	[kíꜜttè]
Perfective	切った	きった	[kíꜜttà]
Negative	切らない	きらない	[kìráꜜnàì]
Negative perfective	切らなかった	きらなかった	[kìráꜜnàkàttà]
Hypothetical conditional	切れば	きれば	[kíꜜrèbà]
Past conditional	切ったら	きったら	[kíꜜttàrà]
Imperative	切れ	きれ	[kíꜜrè]
Volitional	切ろう	きろー	[kìróꜜò]
Desiderative	切りたい	きりたい	[kìrítáꜜì]
Formal	切ります	きります	[kìrímáꜜsù]
Formal negative	切りません	きりません	[kìrímáséꜜǹ]
Formal volitional	切りましょう	きりましょー	[kìrímáshóꜜò]
Formal perfective	切りました	きりました	[kìrímáꜜshìtà]
Continuative	切り 切りに	きり きりに	[kíꜜrì] [kíꜜrì nì]
Negative continuative	切らず 切らずに	きらず きらずに	[kìráꜜzù] [kìráꜜzù nì]
Passive	切られる	きられる	[kìráréꜜrù]
Causative	切らせる 切らす	きらせる きらす	[kìráséꜜrù] [kìráꜜsù]
Potential	切れる	きれる	[kìréꜜrù]

Verb

切(き)る • (kiru) transitive godan (stem 切(き)り (kiri), past 切(き)った (kitta))

Japanese verb pair
active	切る
mediopassive	切れる

1. to cut, to slice, to carve

   野(や)菜(さい)の切(き)り方(かた) ― yasai no kiri-kata ― how to cut vegetables

2. to cut down, fell, chop down

   木(き)を切(き)る ― ki o kiru ― to cut down a tree

3. to prune, trim, shear
4. to cut flat things such as cloth or paper

   紙(かみ)をきれいに切(き)る ― kami o kirei ni kiru ― to cut paper nicely

5. to cut a person with a sword, cut down, kill
6. to separate from the main body, cut off, break away
7. to perform an action as if by cutting
8. to discontinue an action, cut off, break off, turn off, hang up

   電源(でんげん)を切(き)る ― dengen o kiru ― to cut off power → to power off

   電話(でんわ)を切(き)る ― denwa o kiru ― to hang up the phone

9. to cut or sever connection with
10. to cut off or divide by or as if by partition
11. to perform an action boldly
12. to go under, be less than (numerically)

    Synonym: 下回る (shitamawaru)

    1時間(いちじかん)を切(き)る ― ichi-jikan o kiru ― to be under one hour

13. to remove; to run out

    湯(ゆ)切(き)り ― yukiri ― draining of hot water

    髪(かみ)の水気(みずけ)を切(き)る ― kami no mizuke o kiru ― to remove the moisture from the hair

14. to turn sharply

    ハンドルを切(き)る ― handoru o kiru ― to turn the steering wheel

Conjugation

Conjugation of "切る" (See Appendix:Japanese verbs)

Katsuyōkei ("stem forms")
Mizenkei ("imperfective")	切ら	きら	kira
Ren’yōkei ("continuative")	切り	きり	kiri
Shūshikei ("terminal")	切る	きる	kiru
Rentaikei ("attributive")	切る	きる	kiru
Kateikei ("hypothetical")	切れ	きれ	kire
Meireikei ("imperative")	切れ	きれ	kire
Key constructions
Passive	切られる	きられる	kirareru
Causative	切らせる 切らす	きらせる きらす	kiraseru kirasu
Potential	切れる	きれる	kireru
Volitional	切ろう	きろう	kirō
Negative	切らない	きらない	kiranai
Negative continuative	切らず	きらず	kirazu
Formal	切ります	きります	kirimasu
Perfective	切った	きった	kitta
Conjunctive	切って	きって	kitte
Hypothetical conditional	切れば	きれば	kireba

Classical conjugation of "切る" (ラ行四段活用, see Appendix:Japanese verbs.)

Stem forms
Irrealis (未然形)	切ら	きら	kira
Continuative (連用形)	切り	きり	kiri
Terminal (終止形)	切る	きる	kiru
Attributive (連体形)	切る	きる	kiru
Realis (已然形)	切れ	きれ	kire
Imperative (命令形)	切れ	きれ	kire
Key constructions
Negative	切らず	きらず	kirazu
Contrasting conjunction	切れど	きれど	kiredo
Causal conjunction	切れば	きれば	kireba
Conditional conjunction	切らば	きらば	kiraba
Past tense (firsthand knowledge)	切りき	きりき	kiriki
Past tense (secondhand knowledge)	切りけり	きりけり	kirikeri
Perfect tense (conscious action)	切りつ	きりつ	kiritu
Perfect tense (natural event)	切りぬ	きりぬ	kirinu
Perfect-continuative tense	切れり 切りたり	きれり きりたり	kireri kiritari
Volitional	切らむ	きらむ	kiramu

Synonyms

• (cut): 断(た)つ (tatsu)

Antonyms

• (antonym(s) of “cut”): 繋(つな)ぐ (tsunagu, “connect”), 結(むす)ぶ (musubu, “tie”)
• (antonym(s) of “go under numerically”): 超(こ)える (koeru, “go over”)

Derived terms

• 裏切る (uragiru): betray, double-cross
• 区切る, 句切る (kugiru): punctuate, cut off
• 仕切る (shikiru): partition, divide
• 千切る (chigiru): cut up fine, pick
• 値切る (negiru): drive a bargain, haggle
• 封切る (fūkiru, fūgiru): release
• 間切る (magiru): plow through
• 見切る (mikiru): see everything, abandon
• 横切る (yokogiru): cross, traverse
• 打ち切る, 打切る (uchikiru): stop, terminate, abort
• 買い切る (kaikiru): buy up
• 掻き切る, かき切る (kakikiru): cut, slit
• 貸し切る (kashikiru): reserve, charter
• 掻っ切る (kakkiru): cut, slit
• 噛み切る, かみ切る (kamikiru): bite off, gnaw through
• 借り切る (karikiru): reserve
• 食い切る (kuikiru): bite through, eat up
• 困り切る (komarikiru): be greatly perplexed
• 締め切る 閉め切る (shimekiru): close up, shut up
• 澄み切る (sumikiru): be serene
• 擦り切る, 摩り切る, 擦切る (surikiru): cut by rubbing, wear out
• 叩き切る, たたき切る (tatakikiru): mangle, hack down
• 立て切る (tatekiru): close tight
• 突っ切る (tsukkiru): cross, go across
• 詰め切る, 詰切る (tsumekiru): be or remain always on hand
• 取り切る, 取切る (torikiru): take completely, block off
• 苦り切る (nigarikiru): look disgusted
• 逃げ切る (nigekiru): get away, manage to hold on
• 捩じ切る, 捩切る (nejikiru): twist off
• 乗っ切る (nokkiru): (archaic) overcome, get through
• 乗り切る (norikiru): weather, get over
• 剪み切る, 挟み切る (hasamikiru): nip off, snip
• 払い切る (haraikiru): pay off completely
• 踏み切る (fumikiru): make a bold start, take a plunge
• 振り切る (furikiru): shake off, shake free from
• 守り切る (mamorikiru): hold on to something
• 持ち切る (mochikiru): hold all the while
• 焼き切る (yakikiru): burn off
• 寄り切る (yorikiru): (sumo) force someone out of the ring
• 割り切る, 割切る (warikiru): divide without residue, solve, comprehend
• 押し切る, 押切る (oshikiru): face down the opposition
• 思い切る (omoikiru): give up all thoughts of, abandon
• 噛み切る, かみ切る (kamikiru): bite off, gnaw through
• 断ち切る, 断切る, 截ち切る, 裁ち切る (tachikiru): cut apart
• ちょん切る (chongiru): chop something off
• ぶった切る, 打った切る, 打っ手切る (buttagiru): chop
• 息急き切る, 息せき切る (ikisekikiru): pant, gasp
• 取り仕切る, 取仕切る (torishikiru): run or operate a business
• 打っ千切る (butchigiru): win by a wide margin
• 食い千切る (kuichigiru): bite off
• 角に切る (kaku ni kiru): cut into squares
• 縁を切る (en o kiru): get a divorce, sever connections
• 風を切る (kaze o kiru): go flying along
• 首を切る (kubi o kiru): decapitate, dismiss, fire from a job
• 句を切る (ku o kiru): punctuate a sentence
• 芯を切る (shin o kiru): trim a wick
• 手を切る (te o kiru): cut off a relationship
• 波を切る (nami o kiru): cut one's way through the waves
• 封を切る (fū o kiru): break the seal
• 髪を切る, 髮を切る (kami o kiru): cut hair
• しらを切る, 白を切る (shira o kiru): feign ignorance
• せきを切る, 堰を切る, 関を切る (seki o kiru): break a dam and gush forth
• 切符を切る (kippu o kiru): punch a ticket
• 口火を切る (kuchibi o kiru): start a conversation
• 十字を切る (jūji o kiru): make the sign of the cross
• 啖呵を切る (tanka o kiru): speak sharply
• 手刀を切る (tegatana o kiru): (sumo) make ceremonial hand movement
• 電源を切る (dengen o kiru): turn off power
• 電話を切る (denwa o kiru): hang up a telephone
• 見得を切る (mie o kiru): assume a posture, pose
• 身銭を切る (mizeni o kiru): use one's own money
• 火蓋を切る (hibuta o kiru): start
• 自腹を切る (jibara o kiru): pay for with your own money
• シャッターを切る (shattā o kiru): release a camera shutter
• スタートを切る (sutāto o kiru): make a start
• テープを切る (tēpu o kiru): breast the tape
• パーティションを切る (pātishon o kiru): (comp) partition
• メンチを切る (menchi o kiru): stare at, glare at
• 大見得を切る (ōmie o kiru): declare impressively
• 肩で風を切る (kata de kaze o kiru): swagger about
• 大根を繊に切る (daikon o sen ni kiru): cut a radish into fine strips

Related terms

• 伐る (kiru): cut down
• 剪る (kiru): cut
• 截る (kiru): cut
• 斬る (kiru): kill

Suffix

切(き)る • (-kiru) 

1. finish, be through
2. perform an action thoroughly or decisively

Derived terms

• 出切る (dekiru): be out of, have no more at hand
• 言い切る (iikiru): declare, assert
• 売り切る (urikiru): sell out, sell off
• 出し切る (dashikiru): use up, do one's best
• 使い切る, 遣い切る (tsukaikiru): use up, exhaust
• 疲れ切る (tsukarekiru): be exhausted, be tired out
• 付き切る (tsukikiru): be in constant attendance
• 張り切る (harikiru): be in high spirits, be full of vigor
• 冷え切る (hiekiru): become completely chilled
• やり切る (yarikiru): complete decisively, do to completion
• 読み切る (yomikiru): finish reading, read through
• 弱り切る (yowarikiru): faint, be exhausted
• 成り切る (narikiru): turn completely into, become completely
• 割り切る (warikiru): divide without a remainder
• 分かり切る, 分り切る (wakarikiru): be evident, be obvious
• 跡切る (togiru)

References

• “切る”, in 漢字ぺディア [Kanjipedia]‎^[1] (in Japanese), The Japan Kanji Aptitude Testing Foundation, 2015–2026