仕える

/tukapu/ → /t͡sukafu/ → /t͡sukafuru/ → /t͡sukaferu/ → /t͡sukaeru/

From Old Japanese. Appears in the Man'yōshū of 759.^[1]

Cognate with 使う (tsukau, ancient tsukapu; “to use”), and derived via regular historical processes from the 下二段活用 (shimo nidan katsuyō, “lower bigrade conjgation”) verb paradigm from this same root form.

While the 四段活用 (yodan katsuyō, “quadrigrade conjugation”) pattern for tsukau was used to refer to the action of a superior to a subordinate, the shimo nidan conjugation pattern was used to refer to the action of a subordinate to a superior.^[1]

• (Tokyo) つかえる [tsùkáéꜜrù] (Nakadaka – [3])^[2]
• (Tokyo) つかえる [tsùkáérú] (Heiban – [0])^[2]
• IPA^(key): [t͡sɨka̠e̞ɾɯ̟]

仕(つか)える • (tsukaeru) ^{←つかへる (tukaferu)?}intransitive ichidan (stem 仕(つか)え (tsukae), past 仕(つか)えた (tsukaeta))

1. to serve, serve under, take service under
2. to enter public service

This verb is intransitive. What would be translated as the object of this verb in English is marked by に (ni) in Japanese. Examples:

• 最(もっと)も高(たか)い目(もく)的(てき)に仕(つか)える

  motto mo takai mokuteki ni tsukaeru

  to be useful to the highest purpose → to serve the highest purpose

• この数(すう)年(ねん)間(かん)、父(ちち)母(はは)に仕(つか)えている。

  Kono sūnenkan, chichihaha ni tsukaeteiru.

  I have been being useful to my parents for several years now. → I have been taking care of my parents for several years now.

• (serve, serve under): 奉(ほう)仕(し)する (hōshi suru); 奉(ぶ)仕(し)する (bushi suru)
• (enter public service): 仕(し)官(かん)する (shikan suru)

• 神(かみ)に仕(つか)える (kami ni tsukaeru) serve God
• 主(しゅ)人(じん)に仕(つか)える (shujin ni tsukaeru): serve a master, serve an employer faithfully
• 二(に)君(くん)に仕(つか)える (nikun ni tsukaeru): serve two masters
• すまじきものは宮(みや)仕(づか)え (sumajiki mono wa miyazukae): it is better to work for oneself than to work for someone else