欲張る

1. Origins, structure, and basic meaning

• Structure: 欲張る is an intransitive godan verb read よくばる, meaning to be greedy by trying to take or accomplish more than is reasonable.
• Basic usage: Use 欲張って取りすぎる for taking too much out of greed and 欲張らないほうがよい to advise against overreaching.
  • 欲張って料理を取りすぎてしまった。 describes getting greedy and taking too much food; 一度に全部覚えようと欲張らないほうがよい。 advises against greedily trying to memorize everything at once.

2. Common pitfalls and similar expressions

• 欲張って取りすぎる
  • The て-form links the greedy impulse to the resulting act of taking too much food.
• 取りすぎてしまった
  • すぎる marks an excessive amount, and てしまった adds completion or regret about the result.
• 欲張らないほうがよい
  • The negative form with ほうがよい gives advice not to overreach.