泣く

Japanese

Kanji in this term
泣
な Grade: 4
kun’yomi

Alternative spelling
哭く

Etymology

From Old Japanese, derived from 音 (na, “(emotional) sound, voice”, bound form) + く (-ku, verb suffix). Cognate with 鳴(な)く (naku).

Pronunciation

• (Tokyo) なく [nàkú] (Heiban – [0])
• IPA^(key): [na̠kɯ̟ᵝ]

• Tokyo pitch accent of conjugated forms of "泣く"

Source: Online Japanese Accent Dictionary
Stem forms
Terminal (終止形) Attributive (連体形)	泣く	なく	[nàkú]
Imperative (命令形)	泣け	なけ	[nàké]
Key constructions
Passive	泣かれる	なかれる	[nàkárérú]
Causative	泣かせる	なかせる	[nàkásérú]
Potential	泣ける	なける	[nàkérú]
Volitional	泣こう	なこ​ー	[nàkóꜜò]
Negative	泣かない	なかない	[nàkánáí]
Negative perfective	泣かなかった	なかな​かった	[nàkánáꜜkàttà]
Formal	泣きます	なきま​す	[nàkímáꜜsù]
Perfective	泣いた	ないた	[nàítá]
Conjunctive	泣いて	ないて	[nàíté]
Hypothetical conditional	泣けば	なけ​ば	[nàkéꜜbà]

Verb

泣(な)く • (naku) godan (stem 泣(な)き (naki), past 泣(な)いた (naita))

1. (intransitive) to cry; to weep; to sob
   • Rumiko Takahashi, “ＰＡＲＴ(パート).８(はち)　格(かく)闘(とう)演(えん)芸(げい)会(かい)”, in らんま½ (らんま½), volume 5 (fiction), Tokyo: Shogakukan, →ISBN, page 137:

     て、天(てん)道(どう)あかねっ‼なんてことをするんだっ‼

     Te, Tendō Akane'‼ Nan te koto o suru n da'‼

     Te— Tendō Akane!! How could you!?

     泣(な)くんじゃないっ‼

     Naku n ja nai'‼

     Quit wailing, will you!?

   • 2005 November 9, Nobuhiro Watsuki, “武(ブ)装(ソウ)錬(レン)金(キン)ファイナル”, in 武(ブ)装(ソウ)錬(レン)金(キン) (武(ブ)装(ソウ)錬(レン)金(キン)), volume 9 (fiction), Tokyo: Shueisha, →ISBN, page 180:

     バカヤロオォ‼許(ゆる)さねぇぞ　武(む)藤(とう)ォ！よくも先(せん)輩(ぱい)を泣(な)かせやがって…‼

     Baka yarōo‼ Yurusanē zo Mutōo! Yoku mo senpai o nakaseyagatte…‼

     Bastard!! I won’t forgive you, Mutō! How dare you make senpai cry…!!

2. (intransitive) to howl
3. (transitive) to grieve over something

Conjugation

Conjugation of "泣く" (See Appendix:Japanese verbs.)

Katsuyōkei ("stem forms")
Mizenkei ("imperfective")	泣か	なか	naka
Ren’yōkei ("continuative")	泣き	なき	naki
Shūshikei ("terminal")	泣く	なく	naku
Rentaikei ("attributive")	泣く	なく	naku
Kateikei ("hypothetical")	泣け	なけ	nake
Meireikei ("imperative")	泣け	なけ	nake
Key constructions
Passive	泣かれる	なかれる	nakareru
Causative	泣かせる 泣かす	なかせる なかす	nakaseru nakasu
Potential	泣ける	なける	nakeru
Volitional	泣こう	なこう	nakō
Negative	泣かない	なかない	nakanai
Negative continuative	泣かず	なかず	nakazu
Formal	泣きます	なきます	nakimasu
Perfective	泣いた	ないた	naita
Conjunctive	泣いて	ないて	naite
Hypothetical conditional	泣けば	なけば	nakeba

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

Stem forms
Irrealis (未然形)	泣か	なか	naka
Continuative (連用形)	泣き	なき	naki
Terminal (終止形)	泣く	なく	naku
Attributive (連体形)	泣く	なく	naku
Realis (已然形)	泣け	なけ	nake
Imperative (命令形)	泣け	なけ	nake
Key constructions
Negative	泣かず	なかず	nakazu
Contrasting conjunction	泣けど	なけど	nakedo
Causal conjunction	泣けば	なけば	nakeba
Conditional conjunction	泣かば	なかば	nakaba
Past tense (firsthand knowledge)	泣きき	なきき	nakiki
Past tense (secondhand knowledge)	泣きけり	なきけり	nakikeri
Perfect tense (conscious action)	泣きつ	なきつ	nakitu
Perfect tense (natural event)	泣きぬ	なきぬ	nakinu
Perfect-continuative tense	泣けり 泣きたり	なけり なきたり	nakeri nakitari
Volitional	泣かむ	なかむ	nakamu

Derived terms

Derived terms

• 泣(な)き (naki)
• 鳴(な)く (naku), 啼(な)く (naku)
• 泣(な)く泣(な)く (nakunaku, “tearfully, in tears, weeping, crying”)
• しくしく泣(な)く (shikushikunaku, “sob, weep”)
• すすり泣(な)く, 啜(すす)り泣(な)く, 啜(すす)りなく (susuri-naku, “sob”)
• 一(いっ)銭(せん)を笑(わら)う者(もの)は一(いっ)銭(せん)に泣(な)く (issen o warau mono wa issen ni naku, “take care of the penny”)
• 名(な)が泣(な)く (naganaku): of a restaurant or a public person, to not be worthy of some reputation
• 咽(むせ)び泣(な)く (musebinaku, “sob, be choked with tears”)
• 忍(しの)び泣(な)く (shinobi-naku, “shed silent tears”)
• 泣(な)く子(こ)と地(じ)頭(とう)には勝(か)てぬ (nakuko to jitō ni wa katenu): you can't fight City Hall, you cannot win against someone who doesn't listen to reason
• 蚊(か)の泣(な)くような声(こえ) (ka no naku yō na koe, “very thin voice”)

See also

• 涙(なみだ) (namida)
• いさつ (isatsu)
• いさちる (isachiru)

References

• 2002, Ineko Kondō; Fumi Takano; Mary E Althaus; et. al., Shogakukan Progressive Japanese-English Dictionary, Third Edition, Tokyo: Shōgakukan, →ISBN.
• 2002, Yasuo Kitahara, 明鏡国語辞典 (Meikyō Kokugo Jiten), First Edition (in Japanese), Tokyo: Taishūkan Shoten, →ISBN