分かる

分かる

Japanese

Kanji in this term
分
わ Grade: 2
kun’yomi

Alternative forms

• (to understand): 解る
• (to distinguish): 判る

Etymology

From Old Japanese. Derived as the passive or intransitive conjugation of Old Japanese root verb 分く (waku, “to separate, to break into pieces; to be separable or distinguishable”).

Pronunciation

• Kun’yomi
  • (Tokyo) わか​る [wàkáꜜrù] (Nakadaka – [2])[1][2]
  • IPA^(key): [ɰᵝa̠ka̠ɾɯ̟ᵝ]

Verb

分かる (intransitive, godan conjugation, hiragana わかる, rōmaji wakaru)

1. to understand

   はい、わかりました。

   Hai, wakarimashita.

   Yes. I understood.

2. to tell (one thing from another), to distinguish
3. to recognize, to realize

   わかった！

   Wakatta!

   I've got it! / I know!

4. to become known, to turn out

Usage notes

The Japanese verb wakaru is most often glossed as to understand. However, wakaru is intransitive, and it takes the thing that is understood, distinguished, or recognized as the subject (usually marked by particle が (ga)), and not the object (usually marked by particle を (o)). Strictly speaking, wakaru is thus closer to English to be understandable, as the verb wakaru describes the thing itself, unlike English to understand, which describes the action of the person doing the understanding, distinguishing, or recognizing.

Wakaru can take an agent (what would be the subject of the English verb to understand) marked by the particle に (ni).

• 複雑 (ふくざつ)でも、（私 (わたし)に）この事 (じ)情 (じょう)が分 (わ)かる。

  Fukuzatsu de mo, (watashi ni) kono jijō ga wakaru.

  Although it's complicated, this situation is understandable (to me).

Compare the difference in usage of transitive verb 知る (shiru, “to know”).

Conjugation

Conjugation of "分かる" (See Appendix:Japanese verbs.)

Stem forms
Imperfective (未然形)	分から	わから	wakara
Continuative (連用形)	分かり	わかり	wakari
Terminal (終止形)	分かる	わかる	wakaru
Attributive (連体形)	分かる	わかる	wakaru
Hypothetical (仮定形)	分かれ	わかれ	wakare
Imperative (命令形)	分かれ	わかれ	wakare
Key constructions
Passive	分かられる	わかられる	wakarareru
Causative	分からせる 分からす	わからせる わからす	wakaraseru wakarasu
Potential	分かれる	わかれる	wakareru
Volitional	分かろう	わかろう	wakarō
Negative	分からない	わからない	wakaranai
Negative continuative	分からず	わからず	wakarazu
Formal	分かります	わかります	wakarimasu
Perfective	分かった	わかった	wakatta
Conjunctive	分かって	わかって	wakatte
Hypothetical conditional	分かれば	わかれば	wakareba

Derived terms

Derived terms

• 分 (わ)かり切 (き)る (wakarikiru): to be fully understandable, to be completely clear

Related terms

→

• 分 (わ)ける (wakeru): to divide, to split things up, to separate, to classify, to sort out; to split something; to share something (by breaking it into parts)
• 訳 (わけ) (wake): reason for something
• 脇 (わき) (waki): the side of something (especially a side branch or limb that separates from a main body or trunk); armpit

References

1. 1998, NHK日本語発音アクセント辞典 (NHK Japanese Pronunciation Accent Dictionary) (in Japanese), Tōkyō: NHK, →ISBN
2. 2006, 大辞林 (Daijirin), Third Edition (in Japanese), Tōkyō: Sanseidō, →ISBN