一命(いちめい)

いちめい
noun
one's life
formalwrittenliteraryexistence
1. one's life
A person's life, especially in contexts where life is at stake or has been saved. A literary and formal word used in dramatic or serious situations.
一命(いちめい)を取(と)り留(と)めた。
He barely survived.
医師(いし)の迅速(じんそく)な対応(たいおう)で一命(いちめい)を取(と)り留(と)めた。
Thanks to the doctor's swift response, the patient's life was saved.
事故(じこ)は大(おお)きかったが、乗客(じょうきゃく)全員(ぜんいん)が一命(いちめい)を取(と)り留(と)めたのは奇跡(きせき)だ。
The accident was severe, but it was a miracle that all passengers survived.

Usage

Almost always appears in the fixed phrase 一命(いちめい)を取(と)り留(と)める (to survive, to narrowly escape death). This is the most common and natural collocation. The word carries a literary, dramatic weight and is typical of news reports and formal writing.

Other patterns exist but are less common:

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Formal and literary. In everyday speech, 命(いのち) is the standard word for "life."

general
Added 2026.2.15 18:12 · Revised 2026.9.2 13:01
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