1.
to pass through, to go via, to go through (a process or place)
To go through a particular route, process, stage, or intermediary on the way to a destination or result.
審査を経て合格した。
I passed through the screening and was accepted.
大阪を経て広島に向かった。
I headed to Hiroshima via Osaka.
長い議論を経て、ようやく結論が出た。
After going through long discussions, a conclusion was finally reached.
2.
to elapse, to pass (of time)
For time to pass or elapse. Often used in the pattern 〜を経て (after going through, having passed through).
10年を経た今も覚えている。
I still remember even after ten years have passed.
月日が経るのは早い。
Time passes quickly.
戦後50年を経て、町はすっかり復興した。
After 50 years since the war, the town has fully recovered.
CONJUGATION:
Ichidan (ru-verb): 経る → 経ない → 経た → 経て.
USAGE:
The te-form 経て is extremely common, meaning "after going through" or "via." It is used both for physical routes (大阪を経て) and abstract processes (審査を経て). For the time sense, it is often literary or formal.
SIMILAR WORDS:
- 通る: to pass through (physical movement)
- 過ぎる: to pass, to go by (of time)
- 経過する: to elapse, to pass (noun/verb-suru form)
COMMON COLLOCATIONS:
- 〜を経て: via, after going through
- 時を経る: time passes
- 年月を経る: years pass
- 過程を経る: go through a process