消える
kieru[kʲie̞ɾɯ̟]
The English verb "disappear" is translated into Japanese as 消える (kieru).
The verb 消える is used to describe things vanishing or fading away. This applies to physical objects, but also to non-physical things such as sounds, lights or even memories and traces.
Meaning: to vanish (verb)
Which one should you use?
消える is an intransitive verb, meaning it describes something that disappears on its own. In contrast, 消す is a transitive verb used when someone performs an action to erase something or turn something off.
How do you pronounce it?
kieru
Did you know?
- The phrase 消える can be used to describe someone who 'ghosts' another person or suddenly cuts off all communication.
- The kanji used in 消える contains the radical for 'water' (氵) on the left side, which historically links the concept to liquid dissolving or washing away.
- The classical ancestor of this word, the verb 消ゆ, belonged to a specific conjugation class called the 'lower bigrade' (ヤ行下二段活用) which is no longer used in modern speech.
Examples in context
- それは決して消えることはない。That will never disappear.This sentence shows how to express that something will never disappear using 消える.Tatoeba #205237 by bunbuku, translation #42479 by CM
- 雪はすぐに消えるだろう。The snow will soon disappear.This sentence illustrates how to say snow will soon disappear using 消える.Tatoeba #141975 by mookeee, translation #272595 by CK
- 小さいころは、自分が死ねば世界は消えると思っていた。幼稚な妄想！自分はいないのに世界が続くのは許せなかった。When I was a kid, I thought that if I died the world would just disappear. What a childish delusion! I just couldn't accept that the world could continue to exist without me.This passage uses 消える to describe the concept of the world vanishing.Tatoeba #510310 by saeb, translation #510318 by saeb
- 彼は突然消えました。He suddenly disappeared.
- 全くその人影は消えてしまいました。The person's figure completely vanished.
- 命の光が失せる。The light of life disappears.
- あの風景は今や失せた。That landscape has now vanished.
- 彼の足跡が消えちゃった。His footprints disappeared.
- 夢はいつの間にか消えちゃうものだ。Dreams often disappear before you know it.
- 間違いを消してしまいたい。I want to make the mistake disappear.
Example conversation
Misaki and Hiroto are looking for a cat in the garden.
- 美咲 Misakiあ、猫が消える！A, neko ga kieru!Oh, the cat is disappearing!
- 大翔 Hirotoどこに行ったんだろう？Doko ni ittan darou?I wonder where it went?
- 美咲 Misaki茂みの向こうに消えたみたい。Shigemi no mukou ni kieta mitai.It looks like it vanished behind the bushes.
- 大翔 Hirotoもう見つからないね。Mou mitsukaranai ne.We won't find it anymore, will we?
Sources
- Wiktionary, “disappear” translations and entries 消える, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries 消える, CC BY-SA 4.0.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
