“〜meku”: To Take On the Feel/Signs of 〜 (-ish) [JLPT N1]

Content by NTJ Kuma · Nihongo to Japan editorial team · Updated July 27, 2026

Noun ＋ meku: carrying a certain feel or quality

「三月に入り、ようやく春めいてきた」 — giving off the air of…, showing a hint of…

To say “it's starting to have the air of ～,” 「三月に入り、ようやく春めいてきた」 (entering March, it's finally taken on a spring-like feel) — 「〜めく」 = take on the air of ～, a suffix turning a noun into a verb, expressing “give off the air／signs of ～.” This guide covers attachment, using 「めいた」 to modify a noun, and warns that it's a fixed collocation, not free word-formation, plus the sibling word 「めかす.」

Core: giving off a certain air, having a hint of…

「noun ＋ めく」 is a suffix turning a noun into a verb, expressing “take on the air of ～, give off the air／signs of ～” — not “fully being ～,” but “carrying, giving off a certain trait or hint”:

• 彼の言葉には、皮肉めいた響きがあった (his words had a sarcastic ring).
• 彼女は、謎めいた微笑を浮かべた (she gave a mysterious smile).
• 芝居めいた態度で謝られても、誠意は感じられない (even apologized to in that theatrical manner, I sense no sincerity).

Feel: the core is “giving off a certain air, having a hint of…” — 春めく = has taken on a spring feel (not fully spring yet, but giving off spring's hint), 謎めく = mysterious, 皮肉めく = sarcastic. It's an elegant, written, literary suffix. It corresponds to “～-like, taking on the air of ～, giving off a hint of ～, with a touch of ～.”

Attachment rules

See it in context

• 木々が色づき、あたりは秋めいてきた。(The trees turned color, and the surroundings took on an autumn feel.)
• どこか艶めいた雰囲気の女性だった。(She was a woman with a somewhat alluring air.)
• 彼の説明は、言い訳めいて聞こえた。(His explanation sounded like an excuse.)
• 古めかしい言い回しを好んで使う。(He likes to use old-fashioned turns of phrase.)
• 冗談めかして言ったが、実は本気だった。(He said it as if joking, but was actually serious.)

⚠️ Easy traps to avoid

① The core is ‘give off ～'s air／signs' (not fully being ～, but carrying, giving off). 「〜めく」's core is “carrying, giving off a certain trait or hint” — not “fully being ～,” but “having a hint of ～, giving off the air of ～.” It's often for “a season's air,” “an atmosphere,” “an attitude／expression”: 春めく (taken on a spring feel — not fully spring, but giving off spring's hint), 謎めく (mysterious, giving off mystery), 皮肉めく (with a sarcastic touch), 艶めく (alluring), 色めく (become animated／excited). It corresponds to “～-like, giving off a hint of ～, with a touch of ～.” Test: to say “(begin to) give off ～'s air／have a hint of ～” → めく. (It's an elegant, written, literary phrasing.)

② ⭐Use 「めいた」 to modify a noun, not 「めくな／めくの.」 This is the most error-prone attachment. 「めく」 is a verbalizing suffix, and to modify a noun, use its attributive 「めいた」 (= the た-form of めく), not 「めくな」 or 「めくの」: ✗ 謎めくな事件／✗ 謎めくの事件 → ✓ 謎めいた事件 (a mysterious incident), ✓ 皮肉めいた口調 (a sarcastic tone), ✓ 芝居めいた態度 (a theatrical manner). Because 「めく」 is a verb, modify a noun with 「めいた」 (the past／perfect attributive, meaning “having taken on ～'s air”). Mnemonic: noun ＋ めく (verb)／noun ＋ めいた ＋ noun (modifier).

③ ⭐It doesn't attach to any noun freely — it's a fixed collocation; the sibling word 「めかす.」 This is learners' most common error. Though 「めく」's rule looks simple (noun ＋ めく／めいた), it doesn't attach to any noun freely — it's closer to a set of “fixed collocations” (春・秋・謎・皮肉・色・艶・古・芝居・言い訳・ざわ, etc.), and you can't form new words freely by “having the feel of…”: ✗ 猫めく／✗ 机めく (nonexistent, no such phrasing in Japanese). To express “having the feel of…,” general nouns mostly use 「っぽい／のような／らしい」 (子供っぽい・夢のような); only that fixed set uses 「めく.」 Also, 「めく」 has a transitive sibling 「めかす,」 expressing “(deliberately) put on the air of ～”: 冗談めかす (pass off as a joke／pretend to joke), 秘密めかす (make a show of secrecy). Difference: 「めく」 = (naturally) give off ～'s air (intransitive); 「めかす」 = (deliberately) put on ～'s air (transitive). Test: a fixed collocation (春／秋／謎／皮肉／艶めく) → use めく; a general noun “having the feel of…” → use っぽい／のような (don't form 「猫めく」); “deliberately put on ～” → めかす.

🔄 Compare: めく／っぽい／らしい／のような

💡 Quick takeaway

「〜めく」 = take on the air of ～ (noun→verb) — three points: ① the core is “give off ～'s air／signs” (not fully being ～, but giving off a hint: 春めく = a spring feel); ②⭐modify a noun with 「めいた」 (✗謎めくな／めくの→謎めいた); ③⭐a fixed collocation, no free word-formation (春・秋・謎・皮肉・艶めく, ✗猫めく／机めく), with the sibling 「めかす」 = (deliberately) put on ～. This is an elegant, literary suffix — 「春めく,」 「謎めいた微笑,」 「皮肉めいた口調」 have real polish and atmosphere. To elegantly write “(begin to) give off ～'s air,” 「〜めく／めいた」 has the most flavor; but remember it's a fixed collocation (don't form 「猫めく」 by Chinese logic), and for a general noun's “having the feel of…” use 〈らしい〉／っぽい.

❓ Quick FAQ

Q: Do 「謎めいた」 and 「謎っぽい」 mean the same? Interchangeable?

Close in meaning (both “mysterious-ish”), but different in register and attachability, not always interchangeable. 「〜めく／めいた」 = give off ～'s air (elegant, written, literary, a fixed collocation): it's an elegant, polished, written／literary suffix, and 「謎めいた」 = “giving off mystery, with a mysterious air,” with a beautiful, atmospheric feel: 謎めいた微笑 (a mysterious smile), 謎めいた事件 (a baffling incident). It's mostly for literary, formal description, and can attach only to that fixed set of nouns (謎・春・皮肉・艶 etc.). 「〜っぽい」 = have a ～ tinge, ～-ish (colloquial, everyday, freely attachable): it's a colloquial, everyday, casual suffix, and 「謎っぽい」 = “a bit mysterious, kind of secretive,” with a casual, colloquial feel: あの人、なんか謎っぽい (that person seems kind of mysterious). 「っぽい」 can freely attach to various nouns／adjectives (子供っぽい・水っぽい・怒りっぽい・白っぽい), far broader in range. Difference: 「めいた」 elegant, written, literary, a fixed collocation (謎めいた微笑); 「っぽい」 colloquial, casual, freely attachable (謎っぽい人). Test: literary, formal, elegant description of “giving off ～'s air” → めいた (謎めいた・皮肉めいた); colloquial, casual “a bit ～, has a ～ tinge” → っぽい (謎っぽい・子供っぽい). Also, 「っぽい」 attaches to far more nouns than 「めく」 — 「めく」 has only that fixed set (春／謎／皮肉), while 「っぽい」 attaches almost freely. So for elegance use めいた (but limited to fixed collocations), for colloquial, free word-formation use っぽい.

Q: Can 「めく」 attach to a noun freely? E.g. is 「猫めく」 for ‘having a cat-like feel' correct?

No, 「めく」 can't form words freely — it's a fixed collocation, and 「猫めく」 doesn't exist. This is learners' most common error. Though 「めく」's rule looks simple (“noun ＋ めく = give off ～'s air”), it can't attach to any noun to form words freely — it's closer to a set of fixed, idiomatic collocations, attaching only to specific nouns: seasons (春めく・秋めく・夏めく), atmosphere／expression (謎めく・艶めく・色めく・ざわめく), attitude／speech (皮肉めく・芝居めく・言い訳めく・冗談めく), an old feel (古めく→古めかしい). Beyond these fixed collocations, you can't freely coin new words by the Chinese “having the feel of…”: ✗ 猫めく (for “having a cat-like feel” — wrong, no such phrasing in Japanese), ✗ 机めく, ✗ 車めく (all nonexistent). To express “having the feel of…／like…,” general nouns should use 「っぽい／のような／らしい」: 猫っぽい (cat-like), 猫のような (like a cat), 子供っぽい (childish). So the rule is: 「めく」 is only for fixed collocations (春／秋／謎／皮肉／艶／古 etc.); for other nouns' “having the feel of…,” use っぽい／のような／らしい, don't coin 「〜めく」 yourself. Test: check whether the noun you want is a 「めく」 fixed collocation (春・謎・皮肉…) — yes → めく is fine; no (like 猫・机・車) → use っぽい／のような (don't coin 「猫めく」). Remember 「めく」 isn't an all-purpose formula but a set of fixed collocations to memorize, and you won't coin wrong words.

🖊️ Practice Questions (5)

Q1. 「彼の冗談はどこか皮肉___いた。」(carrying a hint of sarcasm)

(A) め　(B) ら　(C) っぽ　(D) ぶ

Q2. What is the form of 「めく」 when it modifies a noun?

(A) めいた　(B) めくの　(C) めくな　(D) めくだ

Q3. What does 「春めいてきた」 mean?

(A) It's starting to feel like spring (taking on a springlike air)

(B) Spring has ended

(C) It's still winter

(D) No sense of season

Q4. What does 「めく」 do?

(A) Turns a noun into a verb, meaning to take on the air/signs of ~

(B) indicates negation

(C) indicates the past

(D) indicates a command

Q5. Which usage is natural?

(A) 謎めいた事件。　(B) 謎めくな事件。

(C) 謎めくの微笑。　(D) 謎めくだ話。

Answer Explanations

1. (A) め ── 皮肉めいていた.

2. (A) めいた ── Use めいた to modify a noun.

3. (A) ── It's starting to feel like spring.

4. (A) ── Noun → verb, taking on the air/signs of ~.

5. (A) ── 「謎めいた事件」 is correct.