JLPT N1 · Verb

惜しむ (oshimu)

惜しむ (おしむ, oshimu) is a Japanese verb meaning “to spare; to grudge”. It appears in JLPT N1 vocabulary lists and is marked as a common word in JMdict.

Reading: おしむ
Romaji: oshimu
Word class: Godan verb (う-verb) ending in む
Level: JLPT N1 (unofficial)

Meaning

to spare; to grudge; to be sparing (with); to be frugal; to be stingy · godan verb, transitive
to regret; to lament · godan verb, transitive
to be reluctant (to do); to be unwilling · godan verb, transitive
to value; to prize; to hold dear · godan verb, transitive
to love; to cherish · godan verb, transitive · archaic · oft. written as 愛しむ

Example sentences

ほとんど弁当を食べるひまも惜しんで勉強した。

He studied hard, hardly taking time out for lunch.

Tatoeba #196101

彼の死は惜しんでも余りあるものだ。

We cannot grieve over his death too deeply.

Tatoeba #117174

Sentences from the Tatoeba project, linked to this word in JMdict.

Conjugation of 惜しむ

Godan verb (う-verb) ending in む. Plain and polite forms below; try any other word in the Japanese verb conjugator.

Form	Japanese	Reading
Dictionary	惜しむ	おしむ oshimu
Polite (~masu)	惜しみます	おしみます oshimimasu
Negative	惜しまない	おしまない oshimanai
Polite negative	惜しみません	おしみません oshimimasen
Past	惜しんだ	おしんだ oshinda
Polite past	惜しみました	おしみました oshimimashita
Negative past	惜しまなかった	おしまなかった oshimanakatta
Te-form	惜しんで	おしんで oshinde
Potential	惜しめる	おしめる oshimeru
Passive	惜しまれる	おしまれる oshimareru
Causative	惜しませる	おしませる oshimaseru
Volitional	惜しもう	おしもう oshimou
Imperative	惜しめ	おしめ oshime
Conditional (~ba)	惜しめば	おしめば oshimeba

Kanji in 惜しむ

惜

pity, be sparing of, frugalセキ・お.しい・お.しむ · 11 strokes

Related words

Other vocabulary sharing a kanji with 惜しむ.

惜しいおしいregrettable

Source: JMdict entry 1382300 (EDRDG, CC BY-SA 4.0). Level: unofficial JLPT list – how levels are assigned.