事態・事体|じたいjitai[1]atamadaka (head-high)

1. nounsituation; (present) state of affairs; circumstancesoften with a negative connotation
   事態じたいはかなり切迫せっぱくしている。↗

   The matter is really pressing.

• Synonym情勢じょうせいWrittenWritten/formal: the shifting overall picture and its direction, esp. in politics and economics (「国際情勢」). 「事態」 is for a situation that has already arisen, usually bad.
• Synonym状況じょうきょうNeutralNeutral and the most general: conditions at a given time or place, good or bad. 「事態」 leans toward the state a matter has developed into, usually something bad.
• Synonym状態じょうたいNeutralNeutral: the state a person or thing is in (「健康状態」「心理状態」). 「事態」 is about the situation of the whole matter.
• Synonym形勢けいせいWrittenWritten/formal: the way a changing situation is trending, including who is winning (「形勢が逆転する」).
• Related様子ようすNeutralNeutral: how things look from outside; common in speech (「様子を見る」). It carries none of the negative coloring of 「事態」.
• Related具合ぐあいNeutralNeutral: how a body or machine is working, or how something is coming along (「具合が悪い」「進み具合」). 「事態」 is the state the whole matter has reached.
• Related境遇きょうぐうWrittenWritten/formal: the circumstances a person lives in — it applies to people, while 「事態」 is about the matter itself.
• Related景況けいきょうWrittenWritten/formal, news-style: mainly economic conditions (「景況感」). It overlaps with 「事態」 only in the loose sense of 'situation'.
• RelatedシチュエーションNeutralNeutral loanword for a scene or scenario, as in a plot or conversation setting. The feel is much lighter than 「事態」.
• Related時局じきょくWrittenWritten/formal: the current state of the nation or society. In everyday speech 「情勢」 is more common; 「事態」 is for a specific event's situation.

For a general situation, 「状況」 is the default. Use 「事態」 for the state a matter has developed into, often something bad. For the big picture in politics or economics, pick 「情勢」; for how a situation is trending, 「形勢」; for a body or machine, 「具合」.

Usage comparisons are AI-assisted and cross-checked by multiple models; for study reference only

1. （多おおく、良よくないことに用もちいる）物事ものごとが行き着いきついた状態じょうたい。なりゆき。ありさま。