骨(ほね)を折(お)る

ほねをおる

expression

to take pains; to make great effort

1. to take pains; to make great effort; to go to trouble

An idiomatic expression meaning to exert considerable effort or go through hardship for someone or something. Implies the work is demanding and requires dedication.

彼(かれ)のために骨(ほね)を折(お)った。

I went to great trouble for him.

交渉(こうしょう)に骨(ほね)を折(お)ってくれた先輩(せんぱい)に感謝(かんしゃ)している。

I'm grateful to the senior who went to great pains in the negotiations.

両親(りょうしん)が骨(ほね)を折(お)って準備(じゅんび)してくれたおかげで、結婚式(けっこんしき)は無事(ぶじ)に終(お)わった。

Thanks to my parents' painstaking preparations, the wedding went smoothly.

2. to break a bone

The literal meaning of fracturing a bone in one's body.

転(ころ)んで骨(ほね)を折(お)った。

I fell and broke a bone.

スキーで足(あし)の骨(ほね)を折(お)ってしまった。

I broke a bone in my leg while skiing.

階段(かいだん)から落(お)ちて肋骨(ろっこつ)を折(お)り、一(いっ)か月(げつ)入院(にゅういん)することになった。

I fell down the stairs and broke a rib, and had to be hospitalized for a month.

Usage

The idiomatic sense (to take pains) is more common than the literal sense (to break a bone). When someone 骨(ほね)を折(お)る for you, it implies significant personal sacrifice or effort, and you are expected to show gratitude.

Related words

骨折(こっせつ) (bone fracture — the medical noun)
骨(ほね)折(お)り損(ぞん)の草臥(くたび)れ儲(もう)け (all that effort for nothing — a proverb)

Related Words

Related: 骨折(こっせつ) (bone fracture (medical noun))

general

Added 2026.3.15 14:53 · Revised 2026.9.2 13:01

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