惜敗
せきはい
noun/suru-verb
narrow defeat; close loss
Conjugation
| Affirmative | Negative | |
|---|---|---|
| Present | 惜敗する | 惜敗しない |
| Present polite | 惜敗します | 惜敗しません |
| Past | 惜敗した | 惜敗しなかった |
| Past polite | 惜敗しました | 惜敗しませんでした |
| て form | 惜敗して | 惜敗しなくて |
| ている present | 惜敗している | 惜敗していない |
| ている polite | 惜敗しています | 惜敗していません |
| ている past | 惜敗していた | 惜敗していなかった |
| ている past polite | 惜敗していました | 惜敗していませんでした |
| Conditional ば | 惜敗すれば | 惜敗しなければ |
| Conditional たら | 惜敗したら | 惜敗しなかったら |
| Volitional | 惜敗しよう | — |
| Volitional polite | 惜敗しましょう | — |
| Potential | 惜敗できる | 惜敗できない |
| Passive | 惜敗される | 惜敗されない |
| Causative | 惜敗させる | 惜敗させない |
| Imperative | 惜敗しろ | 惜敗するな |
1.
narrow defeat; close loss
losing by a small margin; a defeat that was close and regrettable
1点差で惜敗した。
We suffered a narrow defeat by one point.
決勝で惜敗し、銀メダルに終わった。
They narrowly lost in the finals and ended up with a silver medal.
惜敗だったが、次につながる試合だった。
It was a narrow loss, but it was a match that will lead to future success.
惜敗 describes a defeat that was very close and therefore regrettable.
COMPOSITION:
- 惜: Regrettable, unfortunate
- 敗: Defeat
COMMON COLLOCATIONS:
- 惜敗する (to suffer a narrow defeat)
- 惜敗を喫する (to suffer a narrow defeat - formal)
- 僅差で惜敗 (narrow defeat by a small margin)
USAGE NOTES:
- Implies the loss was close enough that it could have gone either way
- Often used when praising a team/person despite the loss
- Contains the nuance that it's regrettable to have lost
DEGREES OF DEFEAT (from heaviest to lightest):
- 惨敗 (crushing defeat)
- 大敗 (heavy defeat)
- 惜敗 (narrow defeat)
OPPOSITE PAIR:
- 惜敗 (narrow defeat) ↔ 辛勝 (narrow victory)
RELATED TERMS:
- 辛勝 (narrow victory - opposite)
- 接戦 (close game)
- 善戦 (good fight - focus on effort)
REGISTER: Neutral. Common in sports commentary.