1.
to deal with; to take notice of; to engage with; to pay attention to
To engage with or respond to someone. Very commonly used in the negative to mean ignoring someone or not giving them attention.
相手にしないほうがいい。
You'd better just ignore them.
だれも彼を相手にしなかった。
Nobody paid any attention to him.
そんなくだらない挑発を相手にする必要はない。
There's no need to engage with such petty provocation.
USAGE:
Most frequently used in the negative (相手にしない) to mean "to ignore" or "to not bother with." In the affirmative, it can mean to engage with, respond to, or deal with someone. Also used with を: ～を相手にする.
PATTERNS:
- ～を相手にする (to deal with ~)
- 相手にしない (to ignore, to not engage)
- 相手にされない (to be ignored)
SIMILAR WORDS:
- 無視する: to ignore — more direct and deliberate
- 取り合う: to deal with, to attend to — can also be used in negative for ignoring