Japanese word

成り行き

Pronunciation

Romajinariyuki

Meaning

  • nouncourse of events

Example

成り行きを見守ります。na ri yu ki o mi mamo ri ma su

I will watch how things unfold.

Illustration for 成り行き (course of events)

More examples

細かい計画は立てず、成り行きに任せます。koma ka i kei kaku wa ta te zu na ri yu ki ni maka se ma su

I do not make a detailed plan and let things take their course.

Core concept

Describes how a situation unfolds over time, including the direction it takes and where it leads.

Common phrases

  • 成り行きを見守るna ri yu ki o mi mamo ru

    watch how things unfold

  • 成り行きに任せるna ri yu ki ni maka se ru

    let things take their course

Similar words

経過keika: The development of events or a situation from beginning to end.
展開tenkai: The sequence in which events unfold and take a particular direction.
経緯keii: The background and sequence of events behind a situation.

Definition in Japanese

物事が進んでいく過程や、そこから生じる結果。mono goto ga susu n de i ku ka tei ya so ko ka ra shō ji ru kek ka

Word origin

The noun 成り行き (nariyuki) combines the continuative forms 成り (nari) of 成る (naru, "to become") and 行き (yuki) of 行く (iku, "to go"), expressing how matters proceed.

Usage tips

  • In conversation, this noun often lets a speaker describe an open-ended situation without predicting or controlling its final direction.

Other meanings

  • developmentnoun
  • outcomenoun

Word lists with this word