At wit's end
Idioms, Stage 2chunk 6 of 21Feelings & temper
Worn down by a situation: driven crazy, stifled, sick of it, lost, reckless.
- ki ga kuruisouit's driving me crazyliterally “the mind feels about to go haywire”
- tohou ni kurerube at a total lossliterally “night falls on the way ahead”
- yake ni naruact recklessly out of despairliterally “become self-abandoned”
- iki ga tsumarufeel stifled, suffocatingliterally “the breath gets blocked”
- iyake ga sasuget fed up, be sick of itliterally “a feeling of dislike creeps in”
Mix-ups iki ga tsumaru vs iyake ga sasu (similar sound, stifled vs sick of it); tohou ni kureru (at a loss) vs yake ni naru (reckless).
ki ga kuruisou
polite ki ga kuruisou desu
“the mind feels about to go haywire”
it's driving me crazy
In English: go out of my mind
Exaggerated distress, whether frustration (kono oto, ki ga kuruisou), worry, longing or being cooped up (aitakute ki ga kuruisou datta). Ki demo kurutta no? (have you lost your mind?) is mostly a dubbed-film line; in real talk it's atama okashii n ja nai? Ki ga kuruu touches on mental illness, so TV avoids it, and atama ga okashiku narisou is the softer everyday swap.
Softer: atama ga okashiku narisou. Film line: ki demo kurutta no? = have you lost your mind? (most of the 257 hits are ki ga kurutta / ki demo kurutta; the -sou headword itself is 54).
tonari no kouji, urusakute ki ga kuruisou.
The construction next door is so loud it's driving me crazy.
隣の工事、うるさくて気が狂いそう。
hikkoshi to shigoto ga kasanatte, ki ga kuruisou deshita.
Moving house and work all hit at once. I thought I'd lose my mind.
引っ越しと仕事が重なって、気が狂いそうでした。
Written 気が狂いそう · きがくるいそうHeard 257× in 3.17 million lines of film and TV subtitlesLearn alongside iki ga tsumaru, iyake ga sasuMain list -sou (Stage 4), -kute / -de (Stage 1)
tohou ni kureru
polite tohou ni kurete imasu
“night falls on the way ahead”
be at a total loss
Being stranded with no idea what to do next, mostly as a state and when telling the story afterwards: saifu nakushite tohou ni kureteta. On the spot people just say dou shiyou. It's helpless rather than upset; yake ni naru is giving up and doing something rash.
Not kureru 'give': this kureru is 'grow dark', as in hi ga kureru.
shuuden nogashite, eki de tohou ni kureteta.
I missed the last train and was stuck at the station with no idea what to do.
終電逃して、駅で途方に暮れてた。
saifu o nakushite, tohou ni kurete imashita.
I'd lost my wallet and was completely at a loss.
財布をなくして、途方に暮れていました。
Written 途方に暮れる · とほうにくれるHeard 45× in 3.17 million lines of film and TV subtitlesLearn alongside yake ni naruMain list -teru (Stage 1), -ta (Stage 1)
yake ni naru
polite yake ni narimasu
“become self-abandoned”
act recklessly out of despair
Doing something rash and self-destructive after a breakup, a failure or bad news because nothing seems to matter, mostly said about someone: furarete yake ni natteru, yake ni natte zenbu nonjatta. The line you say to them is yake ni naranaide (don't do anything stupid). Tohou ni kureru is being stuck and helpless; yake ni naru is throwing caution to the wind.
Different word by ear: the adverb yake ni (awfully, oddly), heard more often: yake ni shizuka da na = it's awfully quiet. yakekuso (desperate, all-or-nothing); yakezake (drinking to drown it).
ikkai shippai shita kurai de, yake ni naranaide yo.
Don't go off the rails just because you failed once.
一回失敗したくらいで、ヤケにならないでよ。
yake ni naranaide, mou ichido kangaete mimashou.
Don't do anything rash. Let's think it over again.
ヤケにならないで、もう一度考えてみましょう。
Written ヤケになる · やけになるHeard 42× in 3.17 million lines of film and TV subtitlesLearn alongside tohou ni kureruMain list naru (Stage 1), -naide (Stage 2)
iki ga tsumaru
polite iki ga tsumarimasu
“the breath gets blocked”
feel stifled, suffocating
A complaint about a tense or controlling home, office or relationship: ano ie, iki ga tsumaru, often as iki ga tsumarisou. It can also be literal, not being able to breathe.
Single word: ikigurushii (stifling).
jikka ni zutto iru to, iki ga tsumaru.
Being at my parents' the whole time is suffocating.
実家にずっといると、息が詰まる。
ano kaigi, iki ga tsumarisou deshita.
That meeting was so tense I could barely breathe.
あの会議、息が詰まりそうでした。
Written 息が詰まる · いきがつまるHeard 36× in 3.17 million lines of film and TV subtitlesLearn alongside ki ga kuruisou, iyake ga sasuMain list zutto (Stage 1), -to (Stage 2), -sou (Stage 4)
iyake ga sasu
polite iyake ga sashimasu
“a feeling of dislike creeps in”
get fed up, be sick of it
In English: be sick and tired of it
Said about a job, a place, a routine or yourself, often as iyake ga sashite kita (I'm getting sick of it): shigoto ni iyake ga sasu. Akiru is being bored of something; iyake ga sasu is real dislike.
Plain word: unzari suru (be fed up).
mainichi onaji koto no kurikaeshi de, iyake ga sashite kita.
Same thing every day. I'm getting sick of it.
毎日同じことの繰り返しで、嫌気がさしてきた。
shoujiki, ima no shigoto ni iyake ga sashite imasu.
Honestly, I'm fed up with my job.
正直、今の仕事に嫌気がさしています。
Written 嫌気がさす · いやけがさすHeard 29× in 3.17 million lines of film and TV subtitlesLearn alongside ki ga kuruisou, iki ga tsumaruMain list iya (Stage 2), mainichi (Stage 2), -te kuru (Stage 4), shoujiki (Stage 4)