音読み: ギ
訓読み: たわむれる
画数: 15
部首: ほこづくり（戈）
Meaning
Play / Sport / Frolic / Banter / Jest
- Basic forms
- 戯れる — play; frolic; joke around / base form
- 戯れます — plays; frolics / masu form
- 戯れた — played; frolicked / ta form
- 戯れて — playing … / te form
- 戯れない — do not play / negative
- 戯れれば — if (one) plays / conditional
- Common expressions
- 子どもと戯れる — play with children
- 波と戯れる — frolic in the waves
- 言葉と戯れる — play with words
- More
- 戯れている — is playing; is frolicking / state
戯れる（たわむれる） is an ichidan intransitive verb. It often carries a literary or poetic tone, describing playful or lighthearted interaction.
- 戯れる — to play / frolic / flirt
- 戯曲 — play / drama
- 戯言 — nonsense / idle talk
- 戯画 — caricature / cartoon
- 遊戯 — game / pastime
- 演戯 — performance / acting
戯 combines the radical 戈 (halberd) with phonetic and semantic elements suggesting lightness or jest. The idea: even in the presence of “weapons,” the action is not serious battle, but playful sparring, frolic, or jest. This extends to words for games (遊戯), stage plays (戯曲), and jokes (戯言).