～きる／きれる／きれない — Doing It All the Way
Attached to a verb stem, きる expresses doing something completely or thoroughly, to the very end. The potential form きれる means 'to be able to finish/do completely,' and its negative きれない means 'cannot finish' or 'there is too much to do completely.' It emphasizes that an action reaches its limit or full extent.
Structure
[Verb ます-stem] + きる／きれる／きれない
Examples
マラソンを最後まで走りきった。
Marason o saigo made hashirikitta.
I ran the marathon all the way to the end.
走る (run) + きった shows the action was carried through to completion
この料理は多すぎて食べきれない。
Kono ryouri wa oosugite tabekirenai.
There's too much food; I can't finish it all.
食べる + きれない (negative potential) = unable to finish because it's too much
彼女はうれしさを隠しきれない様子だった。
Kanojo wa ureshisa o kakushikirenai yousu datta.
She looked unable to fully hide her joy.
隠す (hide) + きれない = cannot completely do the action
• きる = complete fully; きれる = can complete; きれない = cannot complete / too much to complete. • Often pairs with 数えきれない (countless), 使いきる (use up), 疲れきる (be exhausted). • Can also express reaching an emotional or physical extreme (疲れきる = utterly worn out).
Commonly confused with
The JLPT rarely asks whether you recognise a pattern — it asks which of several similar patterns fits. These are the ones ～きる／きれる／きれない is tested against.
vs ～おわる
おわる simply states an action ended; きる adds the nuance of doing it thoroughly, to the limit, or completely exhausting it.
vs ～ぬく
ぬく stresses persevering through hardship to the end; きる stresses reaching full completion or the total extent, without the struggle nuance.
More verb forms
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