Japanese

Alternative forms

• 弄ぶ, もて遊ぶ, 玩ぶ, 翫ぶ

Verb

もてあそぶ ‎(transitive, godan conjugation, romaji moteasobu)

1. to play with (a toy, a trifle, one's hair, etc.); to fiddle with
   • 1947, Toyoshima Yoshio (豊島与志雄), Tochi ni Kaeru: Kindai Setsuwa (「土地に還る ――近代説話――」), Miraisha (未来社) (1965, Toyoshima Yoshio Chosakushū vol.4 (『豊島与志雄著作集』第四巻))

     彼女 (かのじょ)は彼 (かれ)の耳朶 (じだ)を指先 (ゆびさき)でもてあそぶのが好 (す)きでした。

     Kanojo wa kare no jida o yubisaki de moteasobu no ga suki deshita.

     She liked to finger his lobes.

2. to toy with, to make sport of, to make a fool of, to trifle with
   • 1931, Kunieda Shirō (国枝史郎), Ahen wo Nomu Bishōnen (「鴉片を喫む美少年」), Michitani (未知谷) (1993, Kunieda Shiro Kiden Zenshū vol.6 (『国枝史郎伝奇全集』巻六))

     男 (おとこ)が女 (おんな)を弄 (もてあそ)ぶことに、すっかり慣 (な)れているように、彼女等 (かのじょら)は男 (おとこ)を弄 (もてあそ)ぶことに、これまたすっかり慣 (な)れているのだ。

     Otoko ga onna o moteasobu koto ni, sukkari narete iru yō ni, kanojora wa otoko o moteasobu koto ni, koremata sukkari narete iru noda.

     As men are well accustomed to making sport of women, the girls are quite used to toying with men.

3. to do with as one pleases
4. to appreciate
   • 1927, Masaoka Shiki (正岡子規), Bokujū Itteki (『墨汁一滴』), Iwanami Shoten (岩波書店)

     故 (ゆえ)に茶人 (ちゃじん)の茶 (ちゃ)を玩 (もてあそ)ぶは歌人 (かじん)の歌 (うた)をつくり俳人 (はいじん)の俳句 (はいく)をつくるが如 (ごと)く常 (つね)に新鮮 (しんせん)なる意匠 (いしょう)を案出 (あんしゅつ)し臨機応変 (りんきおうへん)の材 (ざい)を要 (よう)す。

     Yueni chajin no cha o moteasobu wa kajin no uta o tsukuri haijin no haiku o tsukuru ga gotoku tsuneni shinsennaru ishō o anshutsushi rinkiōhen no zai o yōsu.

     Masters of tea ceremonies have to always devise new ideas and prepare materials as the occasion demands in serving tea, as waka poets in creating waka and haiku poets in creating haiku.

Conjugation

Usage notes

Usually written using kana only.

Derived terms

• もてあそべる ‎(moteasoberu)