つかえる

also: つっかえる

つ

か

え

る

Common wordJLPTN1

Meanings

ichidan verb, intransitive verb

get stuck; jam; clog

usually written using kana alone

Physical obstruction: something becomes stuck in a narrow passage, pipe, throat, etc., and cannot move smoothly.

パイプにゴミがつかえて水みずが流ながれない。
The pipe is clogged with debris and the water won't flow.

魚さかな

の

骨ほね

が

のど

に

つかえ

た

。

A fish bone got stuck in my throat.

ichidan verb, intransitive verb

be busy; be occupied; be unavailable

usually written using kana alone

A person or a resource (phone line, seat, schedule) is tied up and cannot be used or accessed.

今いま、手てがつかえていて手て伝つだえません。
I'm tied up right now and can't help.
電でん話わがつかえていてつながらない。
The line is busy and I can't get through.

ichidan verb, intransitive verb

pile up; back up (of work)

usually written using kana alone

Work, tasks, or duties accumulate and remain undone, causing a backlog.

仕し事ごとがつかえていて休やすめない。
Work has piled up and I can't take a break.

ichidan verb, intransitive verb

stumble over words; stammer; hesitate in speech

usually written using kana alone

Words get caught in one's throat; speech halts or becomes hesitant, often from nervousness or emotion.

緊きん張ちょうして言こと葉ばがつかえた。
I was so nervous that I stumbled over my words.

ichidan verb, intransitive verb

feel a lump in one's throat; feel tightness in the chest

usually written using kana alone

A sensation of pressure or blockage in the chest or throat due to strong emotion (grief, anxiety) or physical discomfort; often used with 胸 or のど.

Written forms

つかえるUsage1%
Standard kana spelling; the word is usually written in kana.
つっかえるUsage95%
Emphatic or colloquial variant with a geminate consonant; common in speech.
閊えるUsage4%
rarely-used kanji form
- つかえる
  Rare kanji form; not commonly used.
- つっかえる
支える
rarely-used kanji form
- つかえる
  Rare kanji form; easily confused with 支える (ささえる).
- つっかえる

Kanji

閊to be obstructed, to be blocked, (kokuji)
支branch, support, sustain

Similar words

詰つまる
詰まる also means 'to be blocked' or 'to be stuffed,' but it is more general and can be used for both physical and abstract congestion. つかえる emphasizes a momentary or specific obstruction, often in a narrow passage.
痞つかえる
痞える is a kanji form specifically for the sense of feeling blocked in the chest or throat (sense 5). It is rarely used and largely interchangeable with the kana spelling.

Etymology

The origin is uncertain. It may be related to the idea of something being caught or obstructed, but the exact derivation is unclear.