「サボる」はフランス語 sabotage から。さかのぼると“木靴”sabot に行き着く

Japanese students often say "saboru" when they skip class. It looks like a normal Japanese verb, but it comes from French. The French word is "sabotage." Japanese people cut it to "sabo" and added "ru" to make a verb.

"Sabotage" comes from "sabot," a shoe made of wood. Be careful in English, though. "Sabotage" means breaking something on purpose. To say "saboru" in English, you can say "skip class."

When Japanese students skip a club meeting, they might say they "sabotta." The verb "saboru" was built from a French loanword. Japanese dictionaries explain that "sabotage" was shortened to "sabo," and then the verb ending "-ru" was added. The oldest example in a major Japanese dictionary is from 1923, in a book by Osugi Sakae, and it describes workers who skipped a strike.

The French word has a longer history. According to the American Heritage Dictionary, "sabotage" comes from "saboter," meaning to walk noisily or to do something badly, and that verb comes from "sabot," a wooden shoe. In English, however, "sabotage" means damaging something on purpose. If you miss class on purpose, say "I skipped class."

"Saboru," the everyday Japanese verb for skipping school or slacking off at work, is a clipped French loanword with a native ending attached. Japanese dictionaries trace it to "sabotage," cut down to "sabo" plus "-ru." The earliest example in a major Japanese dictionary, from a 1923 book by Osugi Sakae, has an ironic twist, since it describes workers who skipped the strike itself.

The French side goes back to "sabot," a shoe carved from a single piece of wood. The American Heritage Dictionary links "sabotage" to the verb "saboter," to walk noisily or to bungle, and connects "sabot" with Spanish "zapato," meaning shoe. What the clogs actually had to do with protest is less clear.

One major Japanese dictionary says medieval peasants trampled crops with them to defy their lords, while an encyclopedia that tells the same story adds that other theories exist, and another says there are several theories. English learners face a different trap. In English, "sabotage" means deliberately damaging equipment or undermining a plan, so "I sabotaged my English class" sounds alarming. For staying away from class, Americans say "skip class," and British speakers might say "bunk off" or "skive."