# ちびる
## Japanese
### Etymology 1

* Alternative spelling
* 禿びる
/tubu/ → /t͡subu/ → /t͡ɕibu/ → (grammatical shift) /t͡ɕibiru/
Shift from earlier form 禿ぶ (tsubu, “to become round and small, such as from wear; to become bald”). Cognate with 粒 (tsubu, “grain; small thing”), 円ら (tsubura, “round and plump; small and round”).

#### Pronunciation

* (Tokyo) ちびる [chìbíꜜrù] (Nakadaka –)
* (Tokyo) ちびる [chìbírú] (Heiban – [0])
* IPA: [t͡ɕibʲiɾɯ̟]

#### Verb

ちびる • (chibiru) intransitive ichidan (stem ちび (chibi), past ちびた (chibita))
* to wear down and become small

##### Conjugation

Katsuyōkei ("stem forms") :
| Mizenkei ("imperfective") | ちび | chibi |
| Ren’yōkei ("continuative") | ちび | chibi |
| Shūshikei ("terminal") | ちびる | chibiru |
| Rentaikei ("attributive") | ちびる | chibiru |
| Kateikei ("hypothetical") | ちびれ | chibire |
| Meireikei ("imperative") | ちびよ¹ ちびろ² | chibiyo¹ chibiro² |
| Key constructions ||||
| Passive | ちびられる | chibirareru |
| Causative | ちびさせる ちびさす | chibisaseru chibisasu |
| Potential | ちびられる ちびれる³ | chibirareru chibireru³ |
| Volitional | ちびよう | chibiyō |
| Negative | ちびない ちびぬ ちびん | chibinai chibinu chibin |
| Negative continuative | ちびず | chibizu |
| Formal | ちびます | chibimasu |
| Perfective | ちびた | chibita |
| Conjunctive | ちびて | chibite |
| Hypothetical conditional | ちびれば | chibireba |
| ¹ Written imperative ² Spoken imperative ³ Colloquial potential ||||

##### Derived terms

* 禿(ち)び筆(ふで) (chibifude, “a worn-down calligraphy brush”)
* 禿(ちび)る (chibiru, “to wear down and become small”, 四段活用 (yodan katsuyō, “quadrigrade conjugation”), rare)
* ちび (chibi, “runt, pipsqueak”)

### Etymology 2

Possibly derived from the underlying sense of little bit, small amount of noun 粒 (tsubu, root of homophonous verb 禿びる (“to wear down”)), or a shift in sense from that verb.
First attested in a work from 1772.

#### Pronunciation

* (Tokyo) ちびる [chìbíꜜrù] (Nakadaka –)
* IPA: [t͡ɕibʲiɾɯ̟]

#### Verb

ちびる • (chibiru) godan (stem ちびり (chibiri), past ちびった (chibitta))
* [from before 1772] (informal) to stint, to pay out or use something in a stingy fashion
    Synonyms: 出し惜しむ (dashioshimu), けちけちする (kechikechi suru)
* [from 1772] (informal) to leak something out a little bit at a time; (by extension) to urinate or defecate a small amount
* [from early 1890s] (informal) to drink a little bit at a time, to sip slowly, to nurse one's drink

##### Conjugation

Katsuyōkei ("stem forms") :
| Mizenkei ("imperfective") | ちびら | chibira |
| Ren’yōkei ("continuative") | ちびり | chibiri |
| Shūshikei ("terminal") | ちびる | chibiru |
| Rentaikei ("attributive") | ちびる | chibiru |
| Kateikei ("hypothetical") | ちびれ | chibire |
| Meireikei ("imperative") | ちびれ | chibire |
| Key constructions ||||
| Passive | ちびられる | chibirareru |
| Causative | ちびらせる ちびらす | chibiraseru chibirasu |
| Potential | ちびれる | chibireru |
| Volitional | ちびろう | chibirō |
| Negative | ちびらない | chibiranai |
| Negative continuative | ちびらず | chibirazu |
| Formal | ちびります | chibirimasu |
| Perfective | ちびった | chibitta |
| Conjunctive | ちびって | chibitte |
| Hypothetical conditional | ちびれば | chibireba |

### References

* ↑ Shōgaku Tosho (1988) 国語大辞典（新装版） [Unabridged Dictionary of Japanese (Revised Edition)] (in Japanese), Tōkyō: Shogakukan, →ISBN
* 1 2 3 Matsumura, Akira, editor (2006), 大辞林 [Daijirin] (in Japanese), Third edition, Tokyo: Sanseidō, →ISBN
* 1 2 NHK Broadcasting Culture Research Institute, editor (1998), NHK日本語発音アクセント辞典 [NHK Japanese Pronunciation Accent Dictionary] (in Japanese), Tokyo: NHK Publishing, Inc., →ISBN
* ↑ “ちびる”, in 日本国語大辞典 [Nihon Kokugo Daijiten]‎ (in Japanese), concise edition, Tokyo: Shogakukan, 2006