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文法ぶんぽうGrammar Point

〜たる in the capacity of (literary): Meaning & Examples

taru · JLPT N1

JLPT N111 textsStudy card

〜たる means “in the capacity of (literary)”. It is a JLPT N1 pattern: below are its construction, the nuances that trip learners up, and the sentences where real Japanese writers use it.

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一枚いちまいStudy card

A free one-page study card for 〜たる (in the capacity of (literary)), JLPT N1: what it means, how it attaches, 3 example sentences with furigana, and the nuances that trip learners up. Read it right here, or take the PDF or PNG with you. We never ask for an email for this card.

The 〜たる study card: one A4 page holding the pattern, its JLPT N1 meaning, the construction rules, 3 example sentences with furigana, and the nuance notes.
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How 〜たる works

教師たる者は、生徒の模範であるべきだ is “One who is a teacher should be a model for the students.” It links one noun to another — most often 者, もの or 人 — and it invokes the duties that come with the role rather than simply naming it. Stiff, formal and a little grand: the language of speeches, mission statements, and characters who take themselves very seriously.

構文こうぶんConstruction

  • Noun + たる + 者 / もの / 人

    医師たる者、患者を第一に考えるべきだ。 — A doctor should put the patient first.

  • Almost always followed by an obligation

    リーダーたる者は、責任を取らなければならない。 — One who leads must take responsibility.

  • Fossilised adjectives: 堂々たる ・ 確固たる ・ 錚々たる

    確固たる証拠がある。 — There is firm evidence.

例文れいぶんIn a sentence

One who is a teacher should be an example to the students.
One who leads must take responsibility.
Firm evidence was found.

注意点ちゅういてんNuances

  • 学生たる者 is not merely “a student” but “a student, with everything that entails”.
  • The 〜たる者 frame is nearly always completed by べき, なければならない or an imperative. A 〜たる者 sentence that makes no demand sounds unfinished.
  • A whole set of set-phrase adjectives are frozen 〜たる forms — 堂々たる態度, 確固たる決意, 錚々たるメンバー. Learn those as vocabulary, not as grammar you generate.
  • It is not the たる of 〜に足る (“worthy of”), which comes from a different verb entirely.
How 〜たる differs from similar patterns
  • 〜として — 〜として states a role neutrally (“as a teacher”); 〜たる adds the weight of what that role demands of you.
  • 〜に足たる — 〜に足たる is an unrelated pattern meaning “worthy of” — 信頼しんらいに足たる人物じんぶつ. Same syllable, different verb, different job.
  • 〜ごとき — Both are classical survivors used as noun modifiers, and both raise the register sharply. ごとき compares; たる assigns a role.

練習れんしゅうYour Turn

Tip

Write one solemn line of advice for a profession you admire, using 〜たる者しゃは followed by べきだ. Read it aloud — the ceremony in it is the whole point of the pattern.

〜たる (in the capacity of (literary)) in real sentences

Each one is quoted from a published Japanese text in this library and links to the story it came from. Some use older spellings, or break off where the sentence carried on. They are transcribed exactly as their authors wrote them.

— from The Tengu Rock Murderer (N1)

— from Household Holiday (N1)

— from Duck Hunting (N1)

— from World Famous Ghost Stories (N1)

Appears in 11 of 367 texts in our library.

蔵書ぞうしょThe texts

11 texts in the library use 〜たる

Free to read in full. Furigana over every kanji, a dictionary on any word you tap, and an English breakdown of each sentence.

世帯休業 cover Read 世帯休業 Household Holiday 岸田 国士 92 min read · Short Story 修禅寺物語 cover Read 修禅寺物語 The Tale of Shuzenji 岡本 綺堂 91 min read · Short Story 番町皿屋敷 cover Read 番町皿屋敷 The Dish Mansion at Bancho 岡本 綺堂 85 min read · Short Story 釘抜藤吉捕物覚書 cover Read 釘抜藤吉捕物覚書 Kuginuki Tokichi's Detective Notes 林 不忘 72 min read · Short Story 鬼桃太郎 cover Read 鬼桃太郎 The Demon Momotaro 尾崎 紅葉 26 min read · Short Story 田原坂合戦 cover Read 田原坂合戦 Battle of Tabaruzaka 菊池 寛 80 min read · Short Story 天狗岩の殺人魔 cover Read 天狗岩の殺人魔 The Tengu Rock Murderer 山本 周五郎 61 min read · Short Story 林檎のうた cover Read 林檎のうた Apple Song 片山 広子 3 min read · Short Story 中国怪奇小説集 cover Read 中国怪奇小説集 Collection of Chinese Strange Tales 岡本 綺堂 45 min read · Short Story 鴨猟 cover Read 鴨猟 Duck Hunting 芥川 竜之介 6 min read · Short Story 世界怪談名作集 cover Read 世界怪談名作集 World Famous Ghost Stories ビアス アンブローズ 62 min read · Short Story

解説かいせつBackground

Where this 〜たる explanation comes from

〜たる sits at JLPT N1 in the 302-point taxonomy every text in this library is tagged against. Each text is read for the patterns it contains, which is what lets this page list every text that uses 〜たる and pull its example sentences out of them.

The example sentences were not written to demonstrate the rule. They are quoted from published Japanese texts in this library (The Tengu Rock Murderer and Household Holiday among them), and each one links back to the story it came from, so you can read the sentence where it actually happened.

質問しつもんQuestions

〜たる: questions & answers

What does 〜たる mean?

It is a classical equivalent of である used to modify a noun: “being”, “in the capacity of”. 社会人たる者 means “one who is a working adult”, with the responsibilities of that status implied.

What usually follows 〜たる者?

An obligation. べきだ, なければならない, or a direct instruction: 武士たる者、恥を知れ. The pattern exists to set up a duty, so the sentence feels incomplete without one.

Is 堂々たる the same たる?

Yes, historically — 堂々たる, 確固たる and 錚々たる are frozen 〜たる forms that now work as ordinary adjectives. Treat them as vocabulary; you cannot form new ones freely.

Is there a printable 〜たる cheat sheet?

Yes. A free one-page 〜たる (in the capacity of (literary)) study card sits at the top of this page, as both a PDF and a PNG. It carries the JLPT N1 meaning, how the pattern attaches, 3 example sentences with furigana, and the nuances learners get wrong. You do not need an account or an email address to download it.

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