元 凶(げんきょう)

げんきょう

noun

root cause, chief culprit, main offender

1. root cause, chief culprit, main offender

The primary source of a problem or the person most responsible for causing harm. Carries a strongly negative connotation.

問題(もんだい)の元凶(げんきょう)を探(さが)す。

Look for the root cause of the problem.

渋滞(じゅうたい)の元凶(げんきょう)は工事(こうじ)だった。

The main cause of the traffic jam was road construction.

長年(ながねん)の不正(ふせい)の元凶(げんきょう)となった人物(じんぶつ)がようやく逮捕(たいほ)された。

The person who was the chief culprit behind years of fraud was finally arrested.

元凶(げんきょう) can refer to both a person (the culprit) and a thing (the root cause). Always carries negative connotation — it assigns blame.

Common collocations

元凶(げんきょう)を突(つ)き止(と)める: to identify the root cause
問題(もんだい)の元凶(げんきょう): root cause of the problem
諸悪(しょあく)の元凶(げんきょう): the source of all evils
元凶(げんきょう)となる: to become the chief cause

Similar words

原因(げんいん): cause (neutral, objective)
犯人(はんにん): culprit, criminal (person only)
根源(こんげん): root, origin (neutral to negative)
張本人(ちょうほんにん): the person responsible (strongly negative)

Pronunciation

Also read as げんきゅう, though げんきょう is more common today.

Related Words

Compare: 原因(げんいん) (cause)

Compare: 犯人(はんにん) (culprit, criminal)

Compare: 根源(こんげん) (root, origin)

Compare: 張本人(ちょうほんにん) (the person responsible)

general

Added 2026.2.17 11:55 · Revised 2026.9.2 13:01

11500/11533_genkyou