直す
なおす
hepburn naosu
to fix, to repair, to correct
Part of speech · godan-verb
Pattern visualization
no decomposition available
Examples
- 壊れた時計を直しました。I fixed the broken clock.
- 医者が病気を治してくれた。The doctor cured my illness.
Collocations
直す (naosu, fix object)治す (naosu, cure illness)修理 (shuuri, repair noun)訂正する (teisei suru, correct)癖を直す (kuse o naosu, fix a habit)
Mnemonic
Naosu is the transitive partner of naoru — same kanji split: 直す (fix object / language / habit) vs 治す (cure illness). The pair sits in the ~oru / ~osu family (both godan; not the ~aru / ~eru pattern like tomaru / tomeru). 直す has broad range — kuse o naosu (fix a habit), bunshou o naosu (revise prose), kikai o naosu (repair a machine). 治す is medical only — isha ga byouki o naosu. Korean "go-chi-da / chi-ryo-ha-da" parallel. The kanji is the same as naoru; ga vs o particle confirms intransitive / transitive use.
Quick check
Kanji choice in "kuse o naosu" vs "byouki o naosu"?