What's the difference between 信ずる and 失恋?

信ずる (しんずる) means "to believe, to believe in, to place trust in" and 失恋 (しつれん) means "disappointed love, broken heart, unrequited love, be lovelorn". Both relate to romantic trust and relationships. A learner might confuse them because 'shinzuru' (to believe) is the foundation of a bond, while 'shitsuren' (broken heart) is the loss of it.

Why do JLPT N2 learners confuse 信ずる with 失恋?

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 信ずる or 失恋 more common on JLPT N2?

Both appear in the JLPT N2 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 Emotions & Mental States theme of N2 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 N2 · Upper Intermediate · Meaning confusion

信ずる vs 失恋

Why JLPT N2 learners mix up 信ずる (しんずる, “to believe, to believe in, to place trust in”) and 失恋 (しつれん, “disappointed love, broken heart, unrequited love, be lovelorn”).

信ずる

しんずる

to believe, to believe in, to place trust in

verb

失恋

しつれん

disappointed love, broken heart, unrequited love, be lovelorn

verb

Theme: Emotions & Mental StatesJLPT N2

Why these get confused

Both relate to romantic trust and relationships. A learner might confuse them because 'shinzuru' (to believe) is the foundation of a bond, while 'shitsuren' (broken heart) is the loss of it.

How to tell them apart

Anchor on the meaning, not the form. 信ずる (to believe, to believe in, to place trust in) and 失恋 (disappointed love, broken heart, unrequited love, be lovelorn) 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

信ずる (to believe, to believe in, to place trust in)

信じる者には次のような印が伴う。彼らは私の名によって悪霊を追い出し、新しい言葉を語る。手で蛇をつかみ、また、毒を飲んでも決して害を受けず、病人に手を置けば治る。
より信頼できる仮説は、変域Ｔにおける要素の数を制限するものである。

失恋 (disappointed love, broken heart, unrequited love, be lovelorn)

青年は失恋した。
青年は失恋した。

How JLPT tests this pair

On JLPT N2, 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

「信ずる」の意味は？

A. to believe, to believe in, to place trust in (correct)
B. disappointed love, broken heart, unrequited love, be lovelorn (distractor)
C. (other plausible meaning)
D. (other plausible meaning)

Drill this pair until it sticks

Reading the explanation is step one. Targeted practice is what actually moves a confusion pair out of your weak list. Free, no signup needed to try.

Practice N2 confusion pairs

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Frequently asked

信ずる vs 失恋

信ずる

しんずる

to believe, to believe in, to place trust in

verb

失恋

しつれん

disappointed love, broken heart, unrequited love, be lovelorn

verb

Theme: Emotions & Mental StatesJLPT N2

Why these get confused

Both relate to romantic trust and relationships. A learner might confuse them because 'shinzuru' (to believe) is the foundation of a bond, while 'shitsuren' (broken heart) is the loss of it.

How to tell them apart

Anchor on the meaning, not the form. 信ずる (to believe, to believe in, to place trust in) and 失恋 (disappointed love, broken heart, unrequited love, be lovelorn) 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.