Why do JLPT N1 learners confuse 謹む with 興業?

Both words occupy adjacent semantic territory, which is exactly why the JLPT uses them as distractors for each other on multiple-choice items. The fastest way to stop confusing them is to study them as a pair, write a one-sentence contrast in your own words, and drill the pair specifically rather than each word in isolation.

Is 謹む or 興業 more common on JLPT N1?

Both appear in the JLPT N1 curriculum and either may show up on a given exam. Don't try to predict which one the test will choose — learn to distinguish them and you'll be safe regardless. Both belong to the General Verbs (8) theme of N1 vocabulary.

How do I practice this confusion pair?

Free option: visit /try and pick a confusion drill. Paid option: none — JLPT Mastery is free during launch. Whichever route you take, the engine specifically re-tests pairs you've gotten wrong rather than rotating through general vocabulary review.

JLPT N1 · Advanced · Meaning confusion

謹む vs 興業

Q: What's the difference between 謹む and 興業?

謹む (つつしむ) means "to be careful, to be chaste or discreet" and 興業 (こうぎょう) means "starting a business; industry". Both relate to formal conduct in society. 謹む describes personal restraint and discretion, while 興業 describes public enterprise; both are high-level vocabulary used in formal Japanese descriptions of professional life.

Why JLPT N1 learners mix up 謹む (つつしむ, “to be careful, to be chaste or discreet”) and 興業 (こうぎょう, “starting a business; industry”).

謹む

つつしむ

to be careful, to be chaste or discreet

verb

興業

こうぎょう

starting a business; industry

verb

Theme: General Verbs (8)JLPT N1

Why these get confused

Both relate to formal conduct in society. 謹む describes personal restraint and discretion, while 興業 describes public enterprise; both are high-level vocabulary used in formal Japanese descriptions of professional life.

How to tell them apart

Anchor on the meaning, not the form. 謹む (to be careful, to be chaste or discreet) and 興業 (starting a business; industry) live in adjacent semantic territory. Memorize the boundary, not just each word.
Read the example sentences below. Seeing each word in its natural context builds a faster lookup than studying the dictionary form alone.

In a sentence

謹む (to be careful, to be chaste or discreet)

軽挙妄動を慎むべきだ。
この歌を聞いたら、あなたについて思って、懐かしむんだ。

興業 (starting a business; industry)

工業都市です。
日本は工業国だ。

How JLPT tests this pair

On JLPT N1, this pair shows up as a vocabulary meaning question. You see one word and pick its English equivalent from four options — one of which will be the other word in this pair, chosen as a distractor precisely because of the overlap.

Sample item

「謹む」の意味は？