競争します（きょうそうします、kyousoうshimasu）
- to compete

The Japanese word 競争します (きょうそうします) means "to compete," "to contend," or "to race." It implies a situation where two or more parties strive to achieve a common goal, often with the intent to win or outperform others. It can be used in various contexts, from sports to business to general everyday situations. 競争します describes an action of engaging in a competition.

⚫︎マラソンで競争します。 Translation: I will compete in a marathon. ⚫︎新しいプロジェクトのために、会社は他の会社と競争します。 Translation: The company will compete with other companies for the new project. ⚫︎試験で友達と成績を競争します。 Translation: I compete with my friends for grades on the test.

This verb is used in situations where there is a competition. It is a formal verb and can be used in both formal and informal settings, although other, more casual, verbs might be preferred in very informal situations. You use this verb when you are describing any type of competition, whether it is a physical contest, a business venture, or even a contest of ideas. You can also use variations such as 競争する (kyousou suru - to compete) or 競争した (kyousou shita - competed).

競争します is written using the kanji 競 (kyou - compete), the kanji 争 (sou - struggle/compete), and the hiragana ます (masu - polite verb ending). The full writing is 競争します. The verb itself is usually written in hiragana for the ます form, but the base of the verb remains in kanji. Variations of okurigana are not typical.

⚫︎対戦します (taisen shimasu): to compete; to play against (used in sports or games) ⚫︎争います (aragaitsimasu): to fight; to contend (a more general term for competing, sometimes implying conflict) ⚫︎競います (kisoi masasu): to compete; to vie for ⚫︎挑みます (idomimasu): to challenge

⚫︎協力します (kyouryoku shimasu): to cooperate; to collaborate ⚫︎協調します (kyouchou shimasu): to harmonize; to cooperate

彼はオリンピックで金メダルを取るために、一生懸命競争します。 ・Translation: He will compete hard to win a gold medal at the Olympics. ・Explanation: This sentence shows the use of 競争します in a sports context, highlighting the effort involved.

市場で新しい製品を売るために、会社は他の会社と競争します。 ・Translation: The company will compete with other companies to sell their new product in the market. ・Explanation: This sentence showcases the use of 競争します in a business setting to denote market competition.

The kanji 競 (kyou) means "to compete" or "to emulate," and the kanji 争 (sou) means "to dispute," "to contend," or "to fight." Together, 競争 (kyousou) forms the core meaning of competition or contending. The addition of the polite verb ending ます (masu) makes it the polite form of the verb "to compete." The word has been used in Japanese for a long time. The precise origin isn't directly know but the kanji has been used in Japan for over a millennium.