🦅 Project Eagle
Quintuple VS

Synonym Boundary: "ひく", "引く", "引っ張る", "抜く", "けむに巻く"

All represent the core concept "pull", but require precise selection.

Japanese Option A

ひく

ひく (hiku)
N5 / CEFR
Japanese Option B

引く

ひく (hiku)
N4 / CEFR
Japanese Option C

引っ張る

ひっぱる (hipparu)
N4 / CEFR
Japanese Option D

抜く

ぬく (nuku)
N3 / CEFR
Japanese Option E

けむに巻く

けむにまく (kemunimaku)
N2 / CEFR

Quintuple VS Nuance Contrast & Social Differences

When expressing "pull" in Japanese, you must carefully distinguish between "ひく", "引く", "引っ張る", "抜く", "けむに巻く" based on context.
  • ひく (ひく (hiku) - Level: N5): Maps to "to pull; to play (string instrument/piano); to draw (a line)" and is used when Has multiple meanings depending on context: 'to pull'.
  • 引く (ひく (hiku) - Level: N4): Maps to "to pull" and is used when Used for pulling objects, drawing lines, or attracting attention. 対義語は「押す」です。.
  • 引っ張る (ひっぱる (hipparu) - Level: N4): Maps to "to pull; to stretch; to drag" and is used when Used when applying force to draw something towards oneself or to stretch something. Often used for physical actions or to delay/prolong something.
  • 抜く (ぬく (nuku) - Level: N3): Maps to "to pull out, to extract, to omit, to skip" and is used when Transitive verb. Can refer to physically pulling something out.
  • けむに巻く (けむにまく (kemunimaku) - Level: N2): Maps to "to pull the wool over someone's eyes; to deceive; to mislead; to confuse" and is used when An idiom meaning to intentionally confuse or mislead someone, often by speaking vaguely, changing the subject, or presenting a confusing array of facts, so that they cannot grasp the truth or question effectively. Lit. 'to wrap in smoke.'.
Mixing these up can easily lead to unnatural translations. Refer to the bilingual context cards below to master the boundaries!
Context for "ひく"
ドアを引いてください。
Please pull the door.
Context for "引く"
このドアは引いてください。
Please pull this door.
Context for "引っ張る"
ドアの取っ手を引っ張ってください。
Please pull the door handle.
Context for "抜く"
歯医者で虫歯を抜いてもらった。
I had a cavity pulled out at the dentist.
Context for "けむに巻く"
彼は質問にはっきり答えず、けむに巻くのが得意だ。
He's good at confusing people by not answering questions clearly.

Synonym Mastery Challenge

Which Japanese word perfectly fits this blank space?

Fill in the blank: "ドアを引いてください。" (Meaning: "Please pull the door.")
🎉 Correct Answer!

Remember: "ひく" is correct here because it represents "to pull; to play (string instrument/piano); to draw (a line)" in the context: "Please pull the door.".

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