Te wo Kiru (手を切る - Washing One's Hands of)

Sep 20, 2018 14:55
Te wo Kiru

There is a Japanese expression, 'te wo kiru' (手を切る).

Since 'te' (手) means "hand" and 'kiru' (切る) means "to cut" or "to cut off," the literal meaning of te wo kiru is "to cut one's hand."

Here, te is used as a word meaning a relationship with someone.

Therefore, te wo kiru means to cut off a relationship with someone.

In particular, this expression is often used to cut off a bad, inappropriate, or sexual relationship.

In English, you can probably say "to wash one's hands of ___" to mean te wo kiru.
手を切る

日本語には「手を切る」という表現があります。

「手」は "hand," 「切る」は "to cut" を意味するので、「手を切る」の文字通りの意味は "to cut one's hand" となります。

ここで、「手」は人との関わり合いを表す言葉として使用されています。

すなわち「手を切る」とは、誰かとの関係を絶つことを意味します。

特に、悪い関係や、男女関係を断ち切る場合に使われることが多いです。

英語では、「洗う」を意味する "wash" を用いて、"to wash one's hands of ___" のように表現されます。
No. 1 Nicholas's correction
  • Since 'te' (手) means "hand" and 'kiru' (切る) means "to cut" or "to cut off," the literal meaning of te wo kiru is "to cut one's hand."
  • This sentence is perfect! No correction needed!
  • Here, te is used as a word meaning a relationship with someone.
  • Here, te means a relationship with someone.
     Your sentence was correct, but this sounds a bit more natural.
  • Therefore, te wo kiru means to cut off a relationship with someone.
  • This sentence is perfect! No correction needed!
  • In particular, this expression is often used to cut off a bad, inappropriate, or sexual relationship.
  • In particular, this expression is often used when one cuts off a bad, inappropriate, or sexual relationship.
  • In English, you can probably say "to wash one's hands of ___" to mean te wo kiru.
  • This sentence is perfect! No correction needed!

Your English is great, and that is an interesting Japanese expression! To "wash one's hands of someone" in English definitely means to cut off your relationship with that person, but it doesn't necessarily refer to a romantic relationship. But you could use it in that case!
Toru
Thank you so much for the correction and comments! (^^)
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