The Meaning of kizutsuku [傷付く] In Japanese

傷付く
きずつく
Romaji: kizutsuku N5

What does 傷付く mean?

Translation and Meaning

to be hurt, to be wounded, to be damaged (emotionally or physically)

Definition

傷付く means to become hurt or damaged; used for physical injury or emotional harm, describing something that experiences injury or setback.

Type

verb (godan)

Stroke Order

Meanings

  • Physical injury or damage to a part of the body
  • Emotional hurt or offense caused by someone’s words or actions
  • Figurative damage to reputation, status, or another non-physical condition

Composition

  • 傷: wound, injury
  • 付く: to attach, adhere; here indicates a state of being affected or damaged

Usage

Used as an intransitive verb to denote that something becomes hurt or damaged, in both physical and emotional senses; in everyday speech it describes personal hurt, while in more formal or written language it can describe damage to objects, conditions, or reputation; often contrasts with 傷つける (to cause harm).
💡 Tips
Mnemonic: imagine a wound that sticks to you as you are crossed by someone’s words—付く means attached, so 傷付く is literally a wound sticking to you, i.e., you become hurt.

Variations

  • 傷つく (kizutsuku) — to be hurt; most common modern spelling
  • 傷付く (kizutsuku) — variant spelling; same meaning, less frequent
  • 傷つける (kizutsukeru) — to hurt someone intentionally or cause offense

Example Phrases

  • 彼女の一言で私は傷付くのを必死に隠した。
    Kanojo no hitokoto de watashi wa kizutsuku no o hisshi ni kakushita.
    With her one remark, I desperately hid that I was hurt.
    Lista:
    • 彼女 (kanojo) – she
    • の (no) – possessive marker
    • 一言 (hitokoto) – one word/remark
    • で (de) – by
    • 私 (watashi) – I
    • は (wa) – topic marker
    • 傷付く (kizutsuku) – to be hurt
    • の (no) – nominalizer
    • を (wo) – object marker
    • 必死に (hisshi ni) – desperately
    • 隠した (kakushita) – hid
    In this sentence, 「傷付く」 means ‘to be hurt’ (emotionally). It is used intransitively and combined with のを to form 傷付くのを隠す, which means ‘to hide that one is hurt.’
傷付く