synonym Comparative
拍車をかける
VS
助長
Differences Between "拍車をかける" and "助長"
Option A
拍車をかける
Meaning
to spur on; to encourage; to accelerate
Reading
はくしゃをかける (hakusha o kakeru)
Syllabus Level
N2
Practical Example
新しいプロジェクトの成功に向けて、さらに拍車をかける必要がある。
It's necessary to further spur on efforts for the success of the new project.
Option B
助長
Meaning
to promote, to encourage, to foster, to exacerbate, to fuel (often with a negative connotation)
Reading
じょちょう (jochou)
Syllabus Level
N2
Practical Example
彼の無責任な行動が、チーム内の不信感を助長した。
His irresponsible actions fueled the distrust within the team.
Which one to use?
Select the correct Japanese word for this context
Which word fits this context: "(to spur on; to encourage; to accelerate)"?
🎉 正解 / Correct!
使い分け解説:
- 拍車をかける: 馬に拍車をかけて速度を上げるように、物事の進行を早めたり、努力を促したりする比喩表現です。(An idiom, literally meaning to apply spurs to a horse. Used metaphorically to mean speeding up progress or encouraging more effort.)
- 助長: This word often carries a nuance of encouraging or promoting something undesirable or negative, such as inflation, bad habits, or conflict. While it can be used neutrally for growth/development, its negative connotation is very common. (「悪い結果を招くものを勢いづかせる」という否定的な意味合いで使われることが多い。)
- 拍車をかける: 馬に拍車をかけて速度を上げるように、物事の進行を早めたり、努力を促したりする比喩表現です。(An idiom, literally meaning to apply spurs to a horse. Used metaphorically to mean speeding up progress or encouraging more effort.)
- 助長: This word often carries a nuance of encouraging or promoting something undesirable or negative, such as inflation, bad habits, or conflict. While it can be used neutrally for growth/development, its negative connotation is very common. (「悪い結果を招くものを勢いづかせる」という否定的な意味合いで使われることが多い。)
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