A few general comments about verbs whose readings can only be determined by context.<\/p>\n
First, let’s look at \u958b\u304f, which can be either aku<\/em> or hiraku<\/em> (we will leave out hadaku<\/em> to simplify things.) When functioning as an intransitive, aku<\/em> is used if something that had been preventing the opening is removed and passage then becomes possible. Hiraku<\/em> is used when something that is closed is opened (and usually left open.) The most common occurrences of hiraku<\/em> as an intransitive involve windows or dialogue boxes on computers, flowers, events, and gaps. Curtains and doors can aku<\/em> or hiraku<\/em>.<\/p>\n Next is \u6ce8\u3050, which (when used as a transitive verb) can be read either as sosogu<\/em> or tsugu<\/em>. This will be read as sosogu<\/em> in most contexts, with one important exception: when liquid is poured into a small container (eg, cup) in order to be drunk. It that case, tsugu<\/em> is supposedly the appropriate reading, though many native speakers will still read it as sosogu<\/em>.<\/p>\n We also have \u907f\u3051\u308b, which can be read as sakeru<\/em> or yokeru<\/em>. Although both mean “to avoid,” the former involves avoiding abstract things and things that one holds a strong dislike for; the latter, on the other hand, often implies a physical response — ducking, swerving, etc. Consider this example:<\/p>\n \u304a\u4e92\u3044\u3001\u751f\u3044\u7acb\u3061\u3084\u6b73\u306e\u3053\u3068\u3082\u3001\u907f\u3051\u3066<\/strong>\u3044\u305f\u8a33\u3067\u306f\u306a\u304f\u3066\u305f\u3060\u8a71\u984c\u306b\u4e0a\u304c\u3089\u306a\u304b\u3063\u305f\u3002<\/p>\n \u91d1\u539f\u3072\u3068\u307f\u300c\u86c7\u306b\u30d4\u30a2\u30b9\u300d<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n Since their childhoods and their ages are abstractions, this would be read sakete<\/em>.<\/p>\n Finally, \u9000\u304f, which (when used as an intransitive verb) can be read as shirizoku<\/em>, doku<\/em>, noku<\/em>, or hiku<\/em> (in classical Japanese, as always, there are even more possibilities.) To begin with, these verbs can be grouped: shirizoku<\/em> and hiku<\/em> both mean to withdraw; doku<\/em> and noku<\/em> both mean to get out of someone’s way. Within the former group, shirizoku<\/em> is the most common reading when this kanji<\/em> is used; within the latter group, the difference today seems mainly a matter of regional dialect. Given this, how would we read:<\/p>\n \u305d\u308c\u4ee5\u4e0a\u3001\u62bc\u3057\u554f\u7b54\u3059\u308b\u306e\u3082\u307f\u3063\u3068\u3082\u306a\u3044\u306e\u3067\u3001\u5973\u306f\u300c\u3058\u3083\u3042\u300d\u3068\u8a00\u3063\u3066\u3042\u3063\u3055\u308a\u9000\u3044\u305f\u3002<\/p>\n \u5c0f\u6c60\u771f\u7406\u5b50\u300c\u6368\u3066\u308b\u300d<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n As we know from context that the woman does not subsequently get out of the man’s way, but that she is retreating, abstractly, from a certain line of questioning, presumably the reading would be shirizoku<\/em>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" A few general comments about verbs whose readings can only be determined by context. First, let’s look at \u958b\u304f, which can be either aku or hiraku (we will leave out hadaku to simplify things.) When functioning as an intransitive, aku is used if something that had been preventing the opening is removed and passage then […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[4],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-7","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-ambiguous-readings","post-preview"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/faculty.washington.edu\/tmack\/wordpress\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/faculty.washington.edu\/tmack\/wordpress\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/faculty.washington.edu\/tmack\/wordpress\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/faculty.washington.edu\/tmack\/wordpress\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/faculty.washington.edu\/tmack\/wordpress\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=7"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/faculty.washington.edu\/tmack\/wordpress\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/faculty.washington.edu\/tmack\/wordpress\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=7"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/faculty.washington.edu\/tmack\/wordpress\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=7"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/faculty.washington.edu\/tmack\/wordpress\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=7"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}