問う（とう）
JLPT N1 · Godan verb (Group 1)
Pitch accent: heiban (flat) — starts low, then stays high with no drop
Meaning: to question/pursue
Example sentences
- 責任の所在を問う。 — To question where responsibility lies.
- 生きる意味を問う。 — To ask what it means to live.
Idioms & proverbs containing “問う”
- 問うは一旦の恥、問わぬは末代の恥 (とうはいったんのはじ、とわぬはまつだいのはじ) — better to ask and be embarrassed than not ask and never know
- 問うは一度の恥、問わぬは末代の恥 (とうはいちどのはじ、とわぬはまつだいのはじ) — better to ask and be embarrassed than not ask and never know
- 鼎の軽重を問う (かなえのけいちょうをとう) — to call someone's ability into question; to doubt a ruler's competence
Related words
See it used in real works
- Example sentences from Japanese novels & web fiction (Massif)
- Hear “問う” pronounced in real videos (YouGlish)