To Put On
To Wear, To Cover Oneself With
transitive verb, godan verb
This word consists of kanji with hiragana attached. Because the hiragana ends with an う sound, you know this word is a verb. The kanji means cover, so the verb version means to put on, to wear, or to cover oneself with.
被る is used when you wear things that cover your head or face, like hats, helmets, and masks, or when cover yourself with something, like pulling a blanket over yourself. Figuratively, it can also refer to overlapping events — think of it like one event "covering" another on a timeline.
Since the kanji's other meaning is incur, 被る can also mean taking on a burden or blame — incurring responsibility, in other words.
Since this word consists of a kanji with hiragana attached, you can bet that it will use the kun'yomi reading. You didn't learn that reading with this kanji, so here's a mnemonic to help you:
Every time you go to put on your hat, you yell "KABOOM (かぶ)!" Why? Because your hat is da bomb. Go ahead, try it: put on your super cool hat while shouting out "KABOOM!" Is everyone looking at you now? Did they realize the hat you're wearing is da bomb?
この仕事では、安全のためにヘルメットを被る必要があります。
In this job, it's necessary to wear a helmet for safety.
この写真でニューヨーク・ヤンキースのキャップを被ってるのが私の弟です。
In this photo, the one wearing the New York Yankees cap is my brother.
うちの子は、他人の前ではいつも猫を被ります。
My child always wears a mask of innocence in front of non-family members.
ストッキングを被った男が銀行からお金を持って走って出ていくのを見ました。銀行に入るタイミングが被らなくて良かった！
I saw a man wearing pantyhose over his head running out of the bank with money. I'm glad our timing for entering the bank didn't coincide!