← Grammar bank

Formation: N + に耐える (withstand); N / V-dictionary + に堪える (be worth); N + に耐えうる／堪えうる (able to withstand / be worth); N + に耐えて (enduring)

Written 耐える, it means to withstand or endure something hard: pressure, heat, pain, earthquakes, harsh training or criticism. It is used of both people and objects. Written 堪える, it means that something is good enough to stand up to a demanding activity. This sense is limited to a small set of words, such as 鑑賞に堪える (worth viewing), 批評に堪える (stands up to criticism), 使用に堪える (fit for use) and 読むに堪える (worth reading). In practice writers do not always keep the two kanji apart. The 'worth' sense is formal, and its positive form is less common than the negative 〜に堪えない, a separate pattern meaning too awful to watch or hear. Compare 〜に値する, an evaluative 'deserves', and 〜に足る, 'enough to justify'. 〜に堪える is more modest: it says something meets the standard needed.

Variants: に耐えられない、に耐え、に耐えうる、に堪えうる、に堪えない

Examples

• この建物は震度七の揺れにも耐えるよう設計されている。
  This building is designed to withstand even shindo-7 shaking.
• 厳しい練習に耐えて、彼はついに代表に選ばれた。
  Having endured gruelling training, he was finally chosen for the national team.
• 子どもの絵だが、十分鑑賞に堪える作品だ。
  It's a child's painting, but it's a work that truly merits viewing.

In real texts 0 occurrence(s)

No post has used this pattern yet. Examples from real texts will appear here.