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Word 1079 of 4449

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無縁

むえん

unrelated; having no relatives

By Nihongo PathUpdated

Examples

  1. 無縁社会という言葉が生まれた。

    むえんしゃかいということばがうまれた。

    The phrase 'society without ties' was coined.

  2. 彼は出世とは無縁の人だ。

    かれはしゅっせとはむえんのひとだ。

    He is a man with no interest in getting ahead.

  3. 私はぜいたくとは無縁の暮らしをしてきた。

    わたしはぜいたくとはむえんのくらしをしてきた。

    I have lived a life untouched by luxury.

Common patterns

～とは無縁だ
to have nothing to do with
無縁社会
a society without human ties
無縁仏
the dead with no one to tend their grave

Memory tip

The everyday use is the pattern AとはBと無縁だ — 'A has nothing to do with B' — and it often quietly praises or pities the subject. The literal 'no surviving relatives' sense survives mainly in 無縁仏 and 無縁社会.

Kanji in this word

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What does 無縁 mean?