起伏
きふく
undulation; ups and downs; rise and fall
By Nihongo PathUpdated
Examples
この辺りは土地の起伏が激しい。
このあたりはとちのきふくがはげしい。
The land around here is very hilly.
起伏のある道を三時間歩いた。
きふくのあるみちをさんじかんあるいた。
We walked an undulating road for three hours.
彼は感情の起伏が大きい人だ。
かれはかんじょうのきふくがおおきいひとだ。
He's a person of strong emotional ups and downs.
起伏に富んだ人生を送ってきた。
きふくにとんだじんせいをおくってきた。
He has led an eventful life.
Common patterns
- 起伏が激しい
- to be steeply undulating; to be volatile
- 感情の起伏
- emotional ups and downs
- 起伏に富む
- to be full of variety
Memory tip
起 'rise' plus 伏 'lie down' — literally land rising and lying flat. The figurative use for a person's moods, 感情の起伏が激しい, is at least as common as the geographical one.
Kanji in this word
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What does 起伏 mean?