How to say 'Stop' or 'Keep' in Japanese | 留める

Wondering how to say 'Stop' or 'Keep' in Japanese? You're in the right place!

The Japanese word for Stop or Keep is 'Todomeru', written as 留める in Japanese.'Stop' or 'Keep' in hiragana is とどめる.

word

留める

Meaning

Stop, Keep

Reading

とどめる

todomeru

Kanji

留Stay, Detain

Explanation

The Japanese verb '留める (とどめる)' has two primary meanings. The first meaning is 'to keep' or 'to retain', often used in the sense of keeping something in a particular state or place. For example: I kept the letter「手紙を留めた」(てがみをとどめた). The second meaning is 'to stop' or 'to halt', used when preventing something from moving or progressing. For example: The police stopped the car「警察は車を留めた」(けいさつはくるまをとどめた). The verb can also imply a sense of restraint or limitation, depending on the context. It is important to note that the kanji 留 can also be read as 'とめる' in other contexts, but the reading 'とどめる' specifically carries these meanings.

Part Of Speech

verb

Kanji JLPT

Kanji Grade

Frequency

4547

Composition

kanji-hiragana

Handwriting

This word is an ichidan verb. To learn how it transforms in different tenses and forms, explore all its conjugations.

Kanji in the Word 留める

This word contains 1 kanji character:

kanji

留

Meaning

Stay, Detain

Hiragana in the Word 留める

This word contains 2 Hiragana characters :

hiragana

め

Reading

hiragana

る

Reading

Words Related to 留める Through the Kanji 留

These 7 Words contain the Kanji 留 as well.

word

留学生

Meaning

Foreign student

word

留学

Meaning

Study abroad

word

停留所

Meaning

Stop

word

書留

Meaning

Registered mail

word

留まる

Meaning

Stop

word

留守

Meaning

Absence

word

留守番

Meaning

House sitting

Learn the Word 留める

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What does 'Todomeru' (留める) mean?

'Todomeru' means 'Stop' or 'Keep' .

To help you master this word, here's an interactive lesson where you'll practice its readings and meanings.