To Be Hung

Meaning

To Be Hung, To Be Hooked, To Be Caught

Word Type

intransitive verb, godan verb

Explanation

Remember how 掛ける is "to hang something"? Well, 掛かる focuses on the fact that something is hanging, without specifying who did it. So it means to be hung. Use it to say a picture is hung on the wall, for example. 掛かる can also mean to be hooked, whether it's the picture hooked to the wall or a fish that happens to be caught on a hook. These uses are all intransitive, so you don't need a direct object them. A hint for this is that 掛かる ends with okurigana that rhyme with ある, and those kinds of verbs tend to be intransitive.

Reading

かかる

Explanation

The reading is the same as 掛ける, so as long as you know that you know this too.

Context

Kanji Composition

• 掛 か Hang