ざるを得ない

From Wiktionary, the free dictionary
Jump to navigation Jump to search

Japanese

[edit]
Kanji in this term

Grade: 5
kun'yomi

Alternative forms

[edit]

Phrase

[edit]

ざるを()ない (-zaru o enai-i (adverbial ざるを()なく (-zaru o enaku))

  1. (idiomatic) have no choice but to; it can't be helped; it's inevitable
    Synonym: 止むを得ない
    (あく)(てん)(こう)(つづ)けば(とう)(ちょう)(だん)(ねん)ざるを()ない
    Akutenkō ga tsuzukeba tōchō wa dannen sezaru o enai.
    If the bad weather continues, it's inevitable that we have to give up climbing to the summit.

Usage notes

[edit]

Attach after the ()(ぜん)(けい) (mizenkei), the -nai form, of the verb; however, for する (suru), which has multiple -nai stems, this formation must use (se), i.e. せざるを()ない (sezaru o enai).

Inflection

[edit]