I'm scared to write this lesson. The reason being that I'm hoping to explain a word that, realistically, eludes explanation.

　かける！

I was talking to a colleague a last month about words that are difficult to translate. A few years back he was the head editor for a Japanese-English dictionary. A dictionary! And he said that one of the most difficult words was かける.

If you scroll over to the page for かける on Jisho.org, it's not hard to see why. It has 24 different meanings!

掛ける／かける (often written with kana only)
1. to hang (e.g. picture); to hoist (e.g. sail); to raise (e.g. flag)
2. to sit
3. to take (time, money); to expend (money, time, etc.)
4. to make (a call)
5. to multiply
6. to secure (e.g. lock)
7. to put on (glasses, etc.)
8. to cover
9. to burden someone
10. to apply (insurance)
11. to turn on (an engine, etc.); to set (a dial, an alarm clock, etc.)
12. to put an effect (spell, anaesthetic, etc.) on
13. to hold an emotion for (pity, hope, etc.)
14. to bind
15. to pour (or sprinkle, spray, etc.) onto
16. to argue (in court); to deliberate (in a meeting); to present (e.g. idea to a conference, etc.)
17. to increase further
18. to catch (in a trap, etc.)
19. to set atop
20. to erect (a makeshift building)
21. to hold (a play, festival, etc.)
22. to wager; to bet; to risk; to stake; to gamble
23. to be partway doing ...; to begin (but not complete) ...; to be about to ...
24. indicates (verb) is being directed to (someone)

And that's just the transitive version. A large number of those meanings can also become the intransitive かかる. Also, we have completely different meanings when using different kanji:

欠ける
かける
1. to be chipped; to be damaged; to be broken
2. to be lacking; to be missing
3. to be insufficient; to be short; to be deficient; to be negligent toward
4. (of the moon) to wane; to go into eclipse

駆ける
かける
1. to run (race, esp. horse); to dash
2. to gallop (one's horse); to canter

賭ける
かける
1. to wager; to bet; to risk; to stake; to gamble

Oh, and the verb 書く（かく // "to write"）, when in the potential form, becomes 書ける（かける // "to be able to write"）.

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How do we deal with all of this かける ?

Well, as far as I can tell, we have two options:

Option #1:

Option #2:

Well, 1 phrase at a time.

Consider the following question:

What does the word "do" mean in English?

Examples:
- He does sports.
- I did nothing today.
- This won't do.
- Do you like sushi?
- Do ask questions, please.

Maybe you're a linguist-o-naut, and you can explain what "do" means in every single situation of life, but the rest of us just do not care.

I have no idea why I say "Do" before "...you like sushi?" Or why I can leave it out in casual speech. I have never taken the time to consider the differences in nuance between "I don't do raw fish" and "I don't eat raw fish."

Instead, I have an intrinsic understanding of these uses, nuances, and phrases because I have seen and used them in countless situations.

And that's the Option #2 approach we're talking about here. I have no idea what かける really means... I just know that I use it in a number of situations and phrases that I have heard several times.

For example...

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かける　＝　hang

コート掛けようか？
コート　かけよう　か？
Want me to hang up your coat?
Literally: "coat + shall I hang (=かける [volitional form + か])?"

This is pretty much the classic かける of "to hang" or, in a sense, "to put on." If you go to a restaurant in Japan during winter, they will often have hangers and hooks near the table where you can hang up your big heavy coats. Sometimes these hangers are in somewhat inconvenient locations (e.g. behind your seat), so you might need to ask your friend if they need you to hang up their coat for them, as in this example.

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かける　＝　place on; lay on

ちゃんと布団かけて寝なさい。
ちゃんと　ふとん　かけて　ねなさい。
Get under the covers and go to sleep. // Put the covers over you properly and go to sleep.
Literally: "properly + futon + put on (=かける [te-form]) + sleep (command)."
Note: A 布団（ふとん）is not (always) like a futon in English. Rather, it is, in this case, a "comforter," the big fluffy blanket you put on a bed.

ここに水かけて。
ここ　に　みず　かけて。
Spray water here. // Rinse off this area.
Literally: "here + に + water + place (=かける [te-form])."
Note: Sometimes you'll see Japanese people spraying the path or street in front of their houses, especially during summer in order to cool it off (they have lots of water in Japan), which would be appropriate to imagine for this example (maybe two family members talking).

ソースかけるとおいしいよ。
ソース　かける　と　おいしい　よ。
It's good if you put sauce on it.
Literally: "sauce + put on (=かける) + と + delicious + よ."

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かける　＝　 fasten; button

うしろのボタンかけて。
Button my dress, will you?
Literally: "back + の + button + fasten (=かける [te-form])."

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かける　＝　 lock

鍵かけた？
かぎ　かけた？
Did you lock the door?
Literally: "lock + put on (=かける [past tense])?"

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かける　＝　 set

目覚ましかけて。
めざまし　かけて。
Set the alarm. // Will you set the alarm?
Literally: "alarm (clock) + put on (=かける [te-form])."
Note: The full word for "alarm clock" is 目覚まし時計（めざましどけい）.

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かける　＝　 heat

やかんを火にかける。
やかん　を　ひ　に　かける。
Put the kettle on (the stove). // Heat up the kettle.
Literally: "kettle + を + fire + に + put on (=かける)."

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かける　＝　 call

兄に電話をかけた。
あに　に　でんわ　を　かけた。
I called my older brother.
Literally: "older brother + に + phone + を + put on (=かける [past tense])."

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かける　＝　 I don't know, man. It means a million things! Leave me alone T_T

罠にかけて捕まえよう。
わな　に　かけて　つかまえよう。
Let's catch him in a trap.
Literally: "trap + に + hang (=かける [te-form]) + catch / capture."

ネズミに魔法をかけた。
ネズミ　に　まほう　を　かけた。
She put a spell on the rat/mouse.
Literally: "rat/mouse + に + magic + を + put on (=かける [past tense])."

ブレーキかけて。
Brake. // Put on the brakes.
Literally: "brakes + put on (=かける [te-form])."

アイロンかけてくれる？
Will you iron this for me?
Literally: "iron + put on (=かける [te-form]) + give me?"

迷惑かけてごめんね。
めいわく　かけて　ごめん　ね。
I'm sorry for troubling you.
Literally: "bother/annoyance + put on (=かける [te-form]) + sorry + ね."

お金かけすぎ。
おかね　かけすぎ。
You spend too much money.
Literally: "money + かける-too much."
Note: When we attach ～ すぎ（る） to the ます-stem of a verb it means "VERB too much" or "over-VERB." So here we're saying that we "over-put-on money." In other words, spent too much.

生命保険かけてる。
せいめいほけん　かけてる。
I have life insurance.
Literally: "life insurance + is put on (=かける [present progressive])."

Wow. I have no idea when I learned to understand all of those. That, I suppose, is the power of taking it one phrase at a time, yeah?

In general, though, are you kind of getting a feel for this word, かける？ It has a sense of "putting on" or "putting over" someone or something. So it often feels like it more or less makes sense, even if you can't really explain it.

If I told my friend I'm not putting on life insurance right now, I think they might understand me, yeah? Or maybe that's just wishful thinking. *_*