節約|せつやくsetsuyaku[0]heiban (flat)
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Definitions
- noun, suru verb, transitive verbeconomising; saving
Conjugation
| Dictionary form | 節約する（せつやくする） |
|---|---|
| Polite (masu) | 節約します（せつやくします） |
| Negative (nai) | 節約しない（せつやくしない） |
| polite (masen) | 節約しません（せつやくしません） |
| classical zu / nu | 節約せず・節約せぬ（せつやくせず・せつやくせぬ） |
| Past (ta) | 節約した（せつやくした） |
| polite (mashita) | 節約しました（せつやくしました） |
| Past negative (nakatta) | 節約しなかった（せつやくしなかった） |
| polite (masen deshita) | 節約しませんでした（せつやくしませんでした） |
| Te form | 節約して（せつやくして） |
| Potential | 節約できる（せつやくできる） |
| Passive | 節約される（せつやくされる） |
| Causative | 節約させる（せつやくさせる） |
| Causative passive | 節約させられる（せつやくさせられる） |
| Conditional (ba) | 節約すれば（せつやくすれば） |
| tara | 節約したら（せつやくしたら） |
| Volitional | 節約しよう（せつやくしよう） |
| polite (mashou) | 節約しましょう（せつやくしましょう） |
| Imperative | 節約しろ（せつやくしろ） |
Common forms generated by rule; see the senses for honorific or irregular usage.
Synonyms & antonyms
- Synonym節減せつげんWrittenA written word for trimming expenses or usage, as in 「経費節減」; leans formal compared with the everyday 「節約」.
- Synonym倹約けんやくNeutralFrugal living — not wasting money in daily life; stresses a habit or attitude and is mostly about money, while 「節約」 readily extends to time, energy and the like.
- Synonym節倹せっけんWrittenA written word for thrift; rare in modern usage, where 「倹約」 is the normal choice.
- Synonym節用せつようWrittenA written word for economising on outlays; hardly seen in modern Japanese.
- Related削減さくげんWrittenA written word for cutting budgets, staff and the like, as in 「人員削減」; centres on shrinking scale rather than avoiding waste.
- Related減額げんがくWrittenReducing a sum or quantity, as in 「給与の減額」; 「節約」 instead stresses cutting out waste.
- Related縮減しゅくげんWrittenA written word for reducing scale or quantity; formal prose rather than everyday speech.
- Related省くはぶくNeutralTo leave out or dispense with what is unnecessary, as in 「手間を省く」; stresses removing the superfluous, whether steps or costs, rather than saving overall.
- Related減らすへらすNeutralA broad verb for decreasing amounts of anything; the cut need not be motivated by thrift, unlike 「節約」.
- Related節するせっするWrittenA written word for being moderate and saving; rare in modern Japanese.
- Antonym浪費ろうひNeutralWasting or squandering money and resources; the direct opposite of 「節約」.
- Antonym乱費らんぴWrittenA written word for squandering or misusing money; the formal opposite of 「節約」.
Use 「節約」 for saving money, time or energy. For a frugal lifestyle pick 「倹約」; for cutting costs or budgets, 「節減」 or 「削減」; for dropping unnecessary steps, 「省く」. 「減額」 and 「縮減」 are formal words for reducing amounts or scale. The written 「節倹」, 「節用」 and 「節する」 are rare today, and 「浪費」 is the everyday antonym.
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
