陥

to fall in; trap

Kanji 1098

Collapsed land. The fall of a city in wartime. Defective cars. Holes in theories. Framing and trapping people. Becoming psychologically or economically depressed. With 陥 you can talk about all these things, as well as saying, “That eventually put him in a very awkward position,” “The news plunged people into distress,” and “Small businesses are feeling the squeeze of inflation.”

Revision history:

Sept. 10, 2022: p. 4: Added “with a trick” (to cover 策を弄する) to the translation of the last sample sentence.

Mar. 21, 2020: Originally published.