Meaning

Primary

To Separate

Alternatives

To Leave, To Detach Oneself

Word Type

intransitive verb, ichidan verb

Explanation

Because the hiragana ends with an sound, you know this word is a verb. The kanji itself means detach, but what happens when something detaches? It causes it to separate and to leave. This refers to when something separates on its own. You aren't doing the separating. You know this because it's rare (れる) to see things separate, but sometimes you do see them. Also, whenever you see れる usually it's a safe bet that you're not the one doing the action, right? Think about it.

Reading

はなれる
  • Kyoko
    (Tokyo accent, female)
  • Kenichi
    (Tokyo accent, male)

Explanation

For the reading, think about what is separating. It's quite sad, because all of the s (はな) are separating from their stems and falling on the ground, and nobody knows why. Just falling off and being sad.

Context

Context Sentences

親元から離れて一人暮らしをすることは思っていたよりも簡単でした。

Being away from my parents and living by myself was easier than I thought.

Kanji Composition