油断
Japanese
| Kanji in this term | |
|---|---|
| 油 | 断 |
| ゆ Grade: 3 |
だん Grade: 5 |
| on'yomi | |
| Alternative spelling |
|---|
| 油斷 (kyūjitai) |
Etymology
Unclear, with multiple theories.
- From the story of the 油鉢 (yuhatsu, “pot of oil”) in the Mahāparinirvāṇa Sūtra (大般涅槃経); see 大般涅槃経#油断大敵.
- 譬如世間有諸大眾，滿二十五里。王敕一臣持一油缽，經由中過，莫令傾覆。若棄一滴，當斷汝命。 [Classical Chinese, trad.]
- Pìrú shìjiān yǒu zhū dàzhòng, mǎn èrshíwǔ lǐ. Wáng chì yī chén chí yī yóubō, jīngyóu zhōng guò, mò lìng qīngfù. Ruò qì yī dī, dāng duàn rǔ mìng. [Pinyin]
- For example, in our world there is a large crowd, filling 25 li. The king ordered a minister: "Carry a pot of oil and pass through the crowd; do not let it tip. If a single drop falls out, your life shall end."
譬如世间有诸大众，满二十五里。王敕一臣持一油钵，经由中过，莫令倾覆。若弃一滴，当断汝命。 [Classical Chinese, simp.]
- Sound change from 寛に (yuta ni).
- There is a lamp in Enryaku-ji (延暦寺) that has been alight since the time of Saichō (最澄), its founder, and 油断 (literally “oil + end”) refers to not letting it go out.
The term is not understood in other parts of the Sinosphere.
Pronunciation
Noun
油断 • (yudan)
Derived terms
- 油断大敵 (yudantaiteki, “unpreparedness is the greatest enemy”)
Verb
油断する • (yudan suru) suru (stem 油断し (yudan shi), past 油断した (yudan shita))
- to be caught off-guard; to be unprepared
- 油断するな
- yudan suruna
- don't let [me, them, …] catch you off-guard; keep your guard up; stay alert
- 油断するな
Conjugation
| Katsuyōkei ("stem forms") | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Mizenkei ("imperfective") | 油断し | ゆだんし | yudan shi |
| Ren’yōkei ("continuative") | 油断し | ゆだんし | yudan shi |
| Shūshikei ("terminal") | 油断する | ゆだんする | yudan suru |
| Rentaikei ("attributive") | 油断する | ゆだんする | yudan suru |
| Kateikei ("hypothetical") | 油断すれ | ゆだんすれ | yudan sure |
| Meireikei ("imperative") | 油断せよ¹ 油断しろ² |
ゆだんせよ¹ ゆだんしろ² |
yudan seyo¹ yudan shiro² |
| Key constructions | |||
| Passive | 油断される | ゆだんされる | yudan sareru |
| Causative | 油断させる 油断さす |
ゆだんさせる ゆだんさす |
yudan saseru yudan sasu |
| Potential | 油断できる | ゆだんできる | yudan dekiru |
| Volitional | 油断しよう | ゆだんしよう | yudan shiyō |
| Negative | 油断しない | ゆだんしない | yudan shinai |
| Negative continuative | 油断せず | ゆだんせず | yudan sezu |
| Formal | 油断します | ゆだんします | yudan shimasu |
| Perfective | 油断した | ゆだんした | yudan shita |
| Conjunctive | 油断して | ゆだんして | yudan shite |
| Hypothetical conditional | 油断すれば | ゆだんすれば | yudan sureba |
¹ Written imperative
² Spoken imperative
References
- “油断”, in 漢字ぺディア [Kanjipedia][1] (in Japanese), The Japan Kanji Aptitude Testing Foundation, 2015–2026