1.
youthful indiscretion; folly of youth
A reckless or foolish act committed because of the impulsiveness and inexperience of youth.
あれは若気の至りだった。
That was a youthful indiscretion.
若気の至りで大学を中退してしまった。
In the folly of youth, I dropped out of college.
今になって思えば、あの時の行動は若気の至りだったと反省している。
Looking back now, I regret that what I did back then was the folly of youth.
An idiomatic expression used to look back on past mistakes with a sense of self-deprecation or wry acceptance. It implies that the mistake was driven by youthful energy, overconfidence, or naivety rather than malice.
The word 若気 refers to youthful spirit or impulsiveness, and 至り means "the height of" or "the extreme of," so the expression literally means "the extreme of youthful spirit."
USAGE:
Almost always used retrospectively — the speaker has matured and is reflecting on a past action. It carries a tone of mild embarrassment rather than deep regret. Often preceded by あれは or followed by だった.
COMMON COLLOCATIONS:
- 若気の至りだった: it was a youthful indiscretion
- 若気��至りで〜してしまった: ended up doing ~ out of youthful folly
- ���気の至りと言えば若気の至り: if you call it youthful folly, that's what it was
SIMILAR EXPRESSIONS:
- 血気にはやる: to be hot-blooded and impulsive (describes the state, not a past reflection)
- 後悔: regret (more general and serious in tone)