Eyes Closed: Me Wo Tsuburu Vs Me Wo Tojiru Differences

(Joy closing her eyes peacefully [Tojiru] vs. Ken squeezing his eyes shut to ignore a mistake [Tsuburu])

“I closed my eyes to sleep.” (Me wo tojiru)
“I turned a blind eye to his mistake.” (Me wo tsuburu)
In Japanese, you have two ways to “close your eyes.” One is a gentle, physical action. The other means shutting them tightly, or metaphorically “pretending not to see something.” Let’s learn this useful idiom with Joy and Ken!

🗣 Conversation Scene

Joy made a small spelling mistake on the JPLT school poster.

Joy

ケンさん、すみません！ポスターの漢字（かんじ）を間違（まちが）えました。
やり直（なお）します…。
(Ken, I’m sorry! I made a mistake on the Kanji for the poster. I’ll redo it…)

Ken

小さな間違いだから、今回は目（め）をつぶりますよ。次に気をつけてくださいね。
(It’s a small mistake, so I will “close my eyes to it [let it slide]” this time. Just be careful next time.)

💡 Explanation

Calmly Closing vs. Shutting Tightly / Ignoring

1. 目を閉じる (Me wo tojiru) = Close eyes (Gently)

Focus: Physical, Calm Action 😌
This simply means bringing your eyelids together. You do this when you go to sleep, rest your eyes, meditate, or listen to music quietly. It has no hidden emotional meaning.

目を閉じて寝（ね）ます。
(I close my eyes and sleep.)
目を閉じて音楽（おんがく）を聴（き）く。
(Close your eyes and listen to music.)

2. 目を瞑る (Me wo tsuburu) = Squeeze shut / Let it slide

Focus: Forceful Action OR Idiom (Forgiving a fault) 🙈
*Note: Often written in Hiragana (目をつぶる) because the Kanji is difficult.
This has two meanings:
1. Physical: Squeezing your eyes shut tightly because of a bright light, fear, or pain.
2. Idiomatic: To “turn a blind eye” to someone’s mistake or fault. You see the problem, but you consciously decide to ignore it and forgive them.

まぶしくて目をつぶる。
(Squeeze eyes shut because it’s too bright.)
今回だけは目をつぶろう。
(I’ll let it slide / turn a blind eye just this once.)

📊 Comparison Table

Expression	Physical Action	Metaphor / Idiom?
目を閉じる (Me wo tojiru)	Gently/calmly closing eyelids	No. Just physical (sleep/rest).
目をつぶる (Me wo tsuburu)	Squeezing shut tightly	Yes. To ignore a fault / let it go.

🚧 Joy’s Mistake

(Joy tells her student that she will forgive their late homework)

❌ Wrong: 今回は 目を閉じます から、明日出してください。
(Meaning: “I am going to physically close my eyes and go to sleep right now, so submit it tomorrow.” This is confusing!)

✅ Right: 今回は 目をつぶります から、明日出してください。
(Meaning: “I will turn a blind eye (forgive you) this time, so submit it tomorrow.”)