吐きます（はきます、hakimasu）
- to exhale

The Japanese verb 吐きます (pronounced はきます, *hakimasu*) primarily means "to vomit" or "to throw up." It refers to the act of expelling the contents of the stomach through the mouth. It can also figuratively mean to "spout" or "spew" something, like words or fire. While the more common meaning is related to the physical act of vomiting, it's important to understand both its literal and figurative uses. It's a transitive verb, meaning it requires a direct object when used in certain contexts. For example, if you vomit *something*, that "something" is the direct object. 吐きます is the polite form of the verb. The plain form is 吐く (*haku*).

⚫︎ 昨日、食べ過ぎて吐いてしまいました。 Translation: I overate yesterday and vomited. ⚫︎ 彼は怒りで悪口を吐き出した。 Translation: He spewed insults in anger. ⚫︎ 船酔いで、もうすぐ吐きそう。 Translation: I feel seasick and I'm about to vomit.

⚫︎ Use 吐きます in situations where someone is physically vomiting due to illness, food poisoning, or motion sickness, for instance. ⚫︎ It can also be used metaphorically to describe someone speaking angrily or aggressively, like "spitting out" words. ⚫︎ It's appropriate to use in a conversation to describe what happened or to express concern for someone who is sick. ⚫︎ In casual situations, you might use the plain form 吐く (*haku*), but in more polite contexts, use 吐きます (*hakimasu*). ⚫︎ Related words are often used in medical or emergency contexts.

⚫︎ The base form is written with the kanji 吐, with the reading は in hiragana. The rest of the verb conjugation uses hiragana. ⚫︎ The basic conjugation is 吐く (*haku*). ⚫︎ The polite form is 吐きます (*hakimasu*). ⚫︎ 吐いた (*haita*) is the past tense (vomited). ⚫︎ 吐かない (*hakanai*) is the negative form (will not vomit).

⚫︎ 嘔吐する (*outo suru*): To vomit (more formal). ⚫︎ 戻す (*modosu*): To throw up, to bring up (colloquial). ⚫︎ ゲロを出す (*gero o dasu*): to throw up (very informal, slang). ゲロ refers to vomit. Note: Some of these can be considered less polite or more informal.

⚫︎ There is no direct antonym for "to vomit" because it is a very specific action. ⚫︎ However, one could consider "to eat" or "to drink" as actions that *precede* vomiting, although they are not direct opposites.

熱が出て、朝から何度も吐いている。 ・Translation: I have a fever, and I've been vomiting several times since morning. ・Explanation: This sentence describes the physical act of vomiting due to illness. The continuous form 吐いて (*haite*) indicates that the person has been vomiting repeatedly.

彼は嘘を吐き続けたので、誰も彼を信じなかった。 ・Translation: He kept spewing lies, so nobody believed him. ・Explanation: This is an example of the figurative use of 吐く, meaning "to spout" or "spew." In this context, it refers to the act of speaking lies.

The kanji 吐 is composed of the mouth radical (口) and 土. In ancient Chinese, the original form showed a person expelling something from their mouth. The word's origins are rooted in describing the action of expelling something from the body or the act of vomiting.