挑戦します（ちょうせんします、chousenshimasu）
- to challenge

挑戦します (読み方: ちょうせんします) means "I will try," "I will take on a challenge," "I will attempt," or "I will venture." It implies a proactive decision to face a new task, difficult situation, or a competitive endeavor. It suggests a willingness to step outside one's comfort zone and put in effort to achieve a goal, even if success isn't guaranteed. The core meaning is to accept a challenge.

⚫︎新しい仕事に挑戦します Translation: I will take on the new job. ⚫︎マラソンに挑戦します Translation: I will run a marathon (I will challenge myself in a marathon). ⚫︎難しい問題に挑戦します Translation: I will attempt the difficult problem.

⚫︎You can use 挑戦します in various situations. It's suitable when you're announcing your intention to try something new, difficult, or potentially risky. ⚫︎It's common to use it when you are expressing a positive attitude toward the new tasks that will occur in the future. ⚫︎It is generally used in a formal setting, but can be used with friends or family depending on the context. ⚫︎ You can use it when talking about trying something new like a hobby, or competing in a sports event.

⚫︎The word is typically written as 挑戦します in kanji and hiragana. ⚫︎挑 (chou) means "challenge," "provoke," or "try." 戦 (sen) means "battle" or "war." します (shimasu) is the polite, present/future tense form of the verb "to do." ⚫︎The okurigana (hiragana attached to the kanji) is always します. ⚫︎ The verb conjugates to 挑戦する (dictionary form), 挑戦しました (past tense), 挑戦しません (negative present/future tense), etc., depending on the grammatical context. For instance, you could use 挑戦しますか at the end of a sentence to express your thought whether you will accept the challenge or not.

⚫︎チャレンジします (charēji shimasu) - to challenge (loanword, more casual) ⚫︎試みます (kokoromimasu) - to try, attempt (more formal) ⚫︎やってみます (yatte mimasu) - to try doing (more casual) ⚫︎取り組む (torikumu) - to tackle, to work on (focuses on the effort)

⚫︎There is no single direct antonym, as it depends on the context of the challenge. However, words or phrases indicating avoidance or refusal of a challenge could be considered antonyms, such as: ⚫︎諦める (akirameru) - to give up ⚫︎避ける (sakeru) - to avoid ⚫︎拒否する (kyohi suru) - to refuse

来年の夏に富士山に挑戦します ・Translation: I will climb Mt. Fuji next summer. ・Explanation: This sentence clearly states the speaker's intention to take on the challenge of climbing Mt. Fuji.

新しい言語の習得に挑戦します。 ・Translation: I will challenge myself to learn a new language. ・Explanation: This sentence expresses the intention to begin the new task or action of language acquisition.

The word 挑戦 (chōsen) is a combination of two kanji: 挑, meaning "to challenge" or "to provoke," and 戦, meaning "battle" or "war." Thus, 挑戦 originally implied the act of initiating a "battle" or "fight," but has evolved to mean taking on a challenge, be it physical, mental, or otherwise. The verb form します is added to make the word "to do" in a polite form.