How to say "cease" in Japanese
Choosing the right word
- ichidan verb, transitive verbCovers ceasing or discontinuing an activity: the subject stops doing something or brings it to an end. Think of quitting a habit, giving up a plan, or stopping an action you have been performing.
- 留めるとどめるichidan verb, transitive verbFor 'cease' this is marginal: its core meanings are to stop something or to stay somewhere, as in staying the night. It is seldom the word you want for something simply ceasing.
- 止むやむgodan verb, intransitive verbCovers things ceasing on their own: the subject is the thing that stops — rain, wind, noise, fighting — not a person ending an activity. Use it when something has stopped and is over.
- godan verb, transitive verbMeans to stop doing something, to desist, or to drop an activity. Its sense largely overlaps with やめる: both describe ceasing an action of your own, one you have decided to give up.
- 途絶えるとだえるichidan verb, intransitive verbFor ceasing as coming to an end or being cut off: something ongoing — news, contact, supplies, sound — stops or is interrupted, rather than an activity someone gives up.
Use 「やめる」 or 「よす」 to cease an activity you are doing, 「止む」 for something ceasing on its own, 「途絶える」 for something coming to an end or being cut off; 「留める」 mainly means to stop something or stay somewhere.
Usage comparisons are AI-assisted and cross-checked by multiple models; for study reference only
Japanese equivalents
See also
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