modality N1 uncommon written

〜に耐える — to be worth ~ing / to withstand ~

〜に耐える・にたえる

Meaning

① withstand / endure (に耐える): to withstand ~ / hold up under ~ / endure ~ — strong enough not to break or give way

② be worth ~ing (に耐える): to be (good enough) worth ~ing / to bear ~ — holds up to scrutiny such as viewing or reading; often negative 〜に耐たえない 'not worth ~ing'

Key sentence

① withstand / endure (に耐える)

この素材そざいは高温こうおんに耐たえる。

This material withstands high temperatures.

② be worth ~ing (に耐える)

この作品さくひんは大人おとなの鑑賞かんしょうにも耐たえる。

This work holds up even to an adult's viewing.

Formation

Attaches to	Form	Example
Noun (both senses) or verb dictionary form ('worth ~ing' sense)	N + に耐たえる / V-る + に耐たえる	重おもみに耐たえる / 鑑賞かんしょうに耐たえる

When: Formal/written. The 'worth ~ing' sense most often appears negated — 見みるに耐たえない 'too awful to watch'.

Examples

① withstand / endure (に耐える)

長年ながねんの使用しように耐たえる丈夫じょうぶな作つくりだ。

It's sturdily built to withstand years of use.

彼かれは厳きびしい批判ひはんに耐たえた。

He endured harsh criticism.

② be worth ~ing (に耐える)

彼かれの文章ぶんしょうは読よむに耐たえない。

His writing is not worth reading.

それは批評ひひょうに耐たえる深ふかい物語ものがたりだ。

It's a deep story that holds up to criticism.

Easily confused with

〜に値あたいする In the 'worth ~ing' sense, に耐たえる means something passes a minimum bar (good enough to bear ~); に値あたいする asserts it positively deserves/merits ~.

Notes

Don't confuse the negative 〜に耐たえない 'not worth ~ing' (見みるに耐たえない) with the formal idiom 〜の念ねんに耐たえない 'cannot suppress (a feeling)' (感謝かんしゃの念ねんに耐たえない) — a different, fixed expression.

See 〜に耐える in real sentences

Jengo shows 〜に耐える the way you actually meet it: inside real Japanese sentences, so it sticks instead of staying an abstract rule.

Study it in Jengo

Sources Compiled from published Japanese grammar references.

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