向き合う|むきあうmukiau[3]nakadaka (mid-high)
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Definitions
- godan verb, intransitive verbto be opposite; to face each other
- godan verb, intransitive verbto confront (an issue); to face
Conjugation
| Dictionary form | 向き合う（むきあう） |
|---|---|
| Polite (masu) | 向き合います（むきあいます） |
| Negative (nai) | 向き合わない（むきあわない） |
| polite (masen) | 向き合いません（むきあいません） |
| classical zu / nu | 向き合わず・向き合わぬ（むきあわず・むきあわぬ） |
| Past (ta) | 向き合った（むきあった） |
| polite (mashita) | 向き合いました（むきあいました） |
| Past negative (nakatta) | 向き合わなかった（むきあわなかった） |
| polite (masen deshita) | 向き合いませんでした（むきあいませんでした） |
| Te form | 向き合って（むきあって） |
| Potential | 向き合える（むきあえる） |
| Passive | 向き合われる（むきあわれる） |
| Causative | 向き合わせる（むきあわせる） |
| Causative passive | 向き合わせられる・向き合わされる（むきあわせられる・むきあわされる） |
| Conditional (ba) | 向き合えば（むきあえば） |
| tara | 向き合ったら（むきあったら） |
| Volitional | 向き合おう（むきあおう） |
| polite (mashou) | 向き合いましょう（むきあいましょう） |
| Imperative | 向き合え（むきあえ） |
Common forms generated by rule; see the senses for honorific or irregular usage.
Synonyms & antonyms
- Synonym向かい合うむかいあうNeutralNeutral. Sitting or standing face to face; 「向き合う」 also covers facing up to a problem and taking it seriously.
- Synonym対向たいこうWrittenWritten/formal prose. Moving or positioned opposite each other, as in 「対向車」; 「向き合う」 leans toward personal, human facing-up.
- Synonym相対するあいたいするWrittenWritten/formal prose. Facing each other or standing in opposition; 「向き合う」 leans toward facing something head-on.
- Related面するめんするWrittenWritten/formal prose. Facing a direction or stretch of water, as in 「海に面する」; 「向き合う」 is two parties facing each other.
- Related取り組むとりくむNeutralNeutral. Getting down to work on a problem; 「向き合う」 stresses facing it squarely and head-on.
- Related対抗たいこうWrittenWritten/formal prose. Opposing or competing against someone; 「向き合う」 carries no sense of confrontation.
- Related直面ちょくめんWrittenWritten/formal prose. Being confronted with hardship, as in 「危機に直面」; 「向き合う」 adds the nuance of actively facing it.
- Related敵対てきたいWrittenWritten/formal prose. Treating someone as an enemy and turning against them; 「向き合う」 implies no hostility.
- Related対するたいするNeutralNeutral. Being aimed at or directed toward something, or how one treats it; 「向き合う」 stresses facing it front on.
- Related臨むのぞむWrittenWritten/formal prose. Facing or taking on an important occasion, as in 「試合に臨む」; 「向き合う」 leans toward facing up squarely.
- Related差し向かうさしむかうWrittenWritten/formal prose. Two people meeting face to face; 「向き合う」 can also be used figuratively for facing up to something.
- Related正対せいたいWrittenWritten/formal prose. Meeting something squarely front to front; in everyday speech 「向き合う」 is the natural choice.
- Antonym背を向けるせをむけるNeutralNeutral idiom. Turning away and ignoring a problem — the exact opposite of the forthright facing that 「向き合う」 describes.
Use 「向き合う」 to face someone or face up to a problem, as in 「自分と向き合う」. For sitting or standing face to face use 「向かい合う」, for tackling a problem 「取り組む」, for being hit by a crisis 「直面」, and for turning away from one 「背を向ける」.
Usage comparisons are AI-assisted and cross-checked by multiple models; for study reference only
Japanese definitions
Kanji in this word
English equivalents
See also
