濁す
にごす
verb (godan)
to make muddy; to speak vaguely
See also:
濁る (intransitive)
Conjugation
| Affirmative | Negative | |
|---|---|---|
| Present | 濁す | 濁さない |
| Present polite | 濁します | 濁しません |
| Past | 濁した | 濁さなかった |
| Past polite | 濁しました | 濁しませんでした |
| て form | 濁して | 濁さなくて |
| ている present | 濁している | 濁していない |
| ている polite | 濁しています | 濁していません |
| ている past | 濁していた | 濁していなかった |
| ている past polite | 濁していました | 濁していませんでした |
| Conditional ば | 濁せば | 濁さなければ |
| Conditional たら | 濁したら | 濁さなかったら |
| Volitional | 濁そう | — |
| Volitional polite | 濁しましょう | — |
| Potential | 濁せる | 濁せない |
| Passive | 濁される | 濁されない |
| Causative | 濁させる | 濁させない |
| Imperative | 濁せ | 濁すな |
1.
to make muddy; to make cloudy
To cause a liquid to become turbid or unclear.
2.
to be vague; to speak evasively
To deliberately avoid giving a clear or direct answer, often by trailing off or changing the subject. Most commonly used in the idiom meaning to gloss things over.
A godan verb (す row) and the transitive counterpart of 濁る (to become muddy). The literal meaning of making something turbid extends figuratively to making speech unclear.
Transitivity
Transitive. The intransitive counterpart is 濁る.
Common expressions
お茶を濁す is a set idiom meaning "to evade the issue" or "to give a half-hearted, noncommittal response." Literally, it refers to making improper tea to cover up one's lack of skill in the tea ceremony.
Common collocations
- 言葉を濁す — to speak vaguely, to be evasive
- お茶を濁す — to gloss over; to be evasive
- 語尾を濁す — to trail off at the end of a sentence
Similar words
- ごまかす — to deceive, to fudge; implies deliberate deception, while 濁す suggests avoidance rather than outright dishonesty
- はぐらかす — to dodge (a question); more about deflecting than making vague
Related Words
Related:
濁り (noun form)
Compare:
誤魔化す (to deceive, to fudge)
Compare:
はぐらかす (to dodge)