godan verb (-mu), transitive verb
Used for cutting food, herbs, paper, etc. into small pieces. Common cooking collocation: 細かく刻む.
玉ねぎを細かく刻む。
Finely chop the onion.
薬味にするネギを刻んでおいた。
I chopped some green onion to use as a garnish.
godan verb (-mu), transitive verb
Means to cut marks, letters, shapes, or grooves into a hard surface such as wood, stone, or metal.
石碑に名前を刻む。
Engrave a name on the stone monument.
木の柱に小さな印を刻んだ。
I carved a small mark into the wooden pillar.
godan verb (-mu), transitive verb
tick away; beat out a rhythm; mark the passage of time
Figurative extension from cutting repeated marks: a clock, heartbeat, drum, or similar subject marks time or beats a rhythm. Common objects include 時, 時間, リズム, and ビート.
古い時計が静かに時を刻んでいる。
The old clock is quietly ticking away the time.
ドラムが力強いリズムを刻む。
The drums beat out a powerful rhythm.
godan verb (-mu), transitive verb
etch into one's mind; remember distinctly
Usually appears in fixed or semi-fixed expressions such as 心に刻む and 胸に刻む, meaning to remember something deeply and not forget it.
See also: 心に刻む
先生の言葉を心に刻んだ。
I etched my teacher's words into my heart.
この失敗を胸に刻んで、次に生かしたい。
I want to keep this failure firmly in mind and use it next time.
godan verb (-mu), transitive verb
tattoo; have tattooed
Archaic use referring to tattooing or having a tattoo put on the body; modern Japanese normally uses 入れ墨を入れる or similar expressions.
古い文章で「肌に刺青を刻む」とあれば、刺青を入れるという意味です。
In old writing, 肌に刺青を刻む means to have a tattoo put on the skin.
godan verb (-mu), transitive verb
Archaic and not a normal modern use of 刻む. In present-day Japanese, 苦しめる or 責めさいなむ would usually be used instead.
辞書では、古い「刻む」に「苦しめる」という意味も載ることがある。
Dictionaries sometimes list an old sense of 刻む meaning 'to torment.'