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身の毛のよだつ (みのけのよだつ) Japanese meaning | Kotomora

身みの毛けのよだつ

Meanings

1

expression, godan verb (-tsu)

hair-raising; bloodcurdling; horrible

Describes something so frightening or shocking that it makes one's hair stand on end. Often used in the phrase 身の毛のよだつ思い or 身の毛のよだつような.

See also: 身の毛が弥立つ

その話はなしを聞きいて身みの毛けのよだつ思おもいがした。
I felt my hair stand on end when I heard that story.

身みの毛けのよだつような悲ひ鳴めいが聞きこえた。

I heard a bloodcurdling scream.

Written forms

身みの毛けのよだつ
Standard spelling using kana for the verb part; the kanji 弥立つ is rare.
身みの毛けの弥立よだつ
Rare kanji spelling; 弥立つ is archaic and not commonly used.

Kanji

身somebody, person, one's station in life
毛fur, hair, feather
弥all the more, increasingly
立stand up, rise, set up

Similar words

身みの毛けが弥立よだつ
Similar meaning, but uses が instead of の, making it a clause rather than a noun-modifying phrase.

Etymology

The phrase literally means 'the body's hairs stand on end'. 弥立つ (よだつ) is an old verb meaning 'to stand up', and 身の毛 (みのけ) means 'body hair'. The exact historical derivation of よだつ is uncertain.