目(め)に遭(あ)う

めにあう
expression
to have a bad experience; to suffer; to go through something unpleasant
emotion
1. to have a bad experience; to suffer; to go through something unpleasant
To experience something negative or unpleasant, often something one did not expect or deserve. Almost always used with a negative modifier describing the type of hardship.
ひどい目(め)に遭(あ)った。
I had a terrible experience.
旅行(りょこう)先(さき)でとんでもない目(め)に遭(あ)った。
I had an awful experience at my travel destination.
詐欺(さぎ)に遭(あ)って、散々(さんざん)な目(め)に遭(あ)った人(ひと)の話(はなし)を聞(き)いて、自分(じぶん)も気(き)をつけようと思(おも)った。
After hearing the story of someone who was scammed and went through a terrible ordeal, I decided to be more careful myself.

The core expression is 〜目(め)に遭(あ)う, where 目(め) means "experience" and 遭(あ)う means "to encounter." It is almost exclusively used for negative experiences. The type of bad experience is specified by a modifier before 目(め).

Common patterns

Similar words

  • 目(め)に遭(あ)わせる: to put someone through a bad experience — the causative form, meaning to inflict hardship on someone
  • 被害(ひがい)に遭(あ)う: to suffer damage; to be victimized — more formal, emphasizes concrete harm
  • 苦労(くろう)する: to struggle; to have a hard time — emphasizes prolonged effort rather than a discrete bad event

Related Words

Compare: 苦労(くろう)する (to struggle)
general
Added 2026.4.28 21:28 · Revised 2026.9.2 13:02
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