What does ki wo tsukeru mean in Japanese?

It’s time for our daily Japanese vocabulary! It’s important to study a little bit every day, so let’s work hard to remember one new word every single day.

Today’s word is actually a phrase… ki wo tsukeru!

~ Please remember that I use a mix of formal and casual Japanese in these posts! I use the type of language often found in shoujo manga~

Note: the photo is from chapter 1, volume 1 of Reincarnated in a Mafia Dating Sim.

What does ki wo tsukeru mean?

ki wo tsukeru is an expression / phrase that can be translated into English as: to be careful, to take care.


The Kanji, it’s meaning, and it’s reading in hiragana

We use two kanji mixed with hiragana to write this phrase: 気を付ける. There are many phrases that start with the kanji 気!


We can write “ki wo tsukeru” using hiragana like this: きをつける.


Let’s try using 気を付ける・きをつける・ki wo tsukeru in a sentence!

Example 1

English: So that you don’t get hurt, please take care.

Romaji only: Kizutsukanai you ni, ki o tsukete kudasai.

Hiragana only: きずつかない よう に、き を つけて ください。

Final: 傷つかないように、気をつけてください。


Example 2

English: Take care on your way home!

Romaji only: Kaeru michi ni ki wo tsukete ne!

Hiragana only: かえる みち に き を つけて ね!

Final: 帰る道に気を付けてね!


Example 3

English: I plan to take care to not be misunderstood, and say what I want to say.

Romaji only: Gokai sarenai you ni ki o tsukete, chanto iitai koto o iu tsumori da.

Hiragana only: ごかい されない よう に き を つけて、ちゃんと いいたい こと を いう つもり だ。

Final: 誤解されないように気を付けて、ちゃんと言いたいことを言うつもりだ。


Example 4

English: Take care so that you don’t catch a cold!

Romaji only: Kaze o hikanai you ni ki o tsukete!

Hiragana only: かぜ を ひかない よう に き を つけて!

Final: 風邪をひかないように気を付けて!


Example 5

English: I’d like it if you were more careful… At least bring someone with you please.

Romaji only:Motto ki o tsukete hoshii na.. Semete dareka o tsurete itte kudasai.

Hiragana only: もっと き を つけて ほしい な。。せめて だれか を つれて いって ください。

Final: もっと気を付けてほしいな。。せめて誰かを連れて行ってください。


Was my post helpful? I hope you learnt something! If you want to support me so that I can continue to share my love of all things shoujo, you can always buy me a coffee!

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I’m Maddie

Welcome to my blog! I want to share my two passions with everyone who visits: reading manga, and studying Japanese. I hope that you enjoy your time here!

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