Table of Contents

すえ and あげく

あげく and すえ are a more restricted version of 結果. They express a final result after a long process.

They must be used with things that:

Took a long time, or were repeated
Express a final result

They cannot be used for natural processes (I.e. weather).

Both 挙句 and 末に contain emotion, typically emphasis on “long time”.
This means they kind of come across as “At last” or “finally” or “After all that“.

Please see below for details on the differences.

すえ

In the End
Noun + の末
Plain Past Verb + 末に

末(すえ) is a noun that means “In the end”. It expresses a final result after a long time.
The result may be good or bad, but may not be a natural process.

末 is most commonly used as past tense + 末に (Adverb)

Examples

長い間話し合った末に問題が解決した – After a long discussion the problem was solved
一年勉強したすえに、1級を合格した – I passed N1 after studying for a (long) year.
議論の末に彼が選ばれた – After a long debate, he was chosen.
5時間探した末に、彼女をやっと見つけた- I finally found her after searching for 5 long hours.

あげく

After all that, something bad
Noun + のあげく
Plain Past Verb + あげく

あげく(挙句) is a noun and adverb that means “Ultimately”.
あげく expresses taking a long time and having a (Final) bad result.
A “bad” result also includes a waste of time.

あげく is most commonly used with the plain past as an adverb. (たあげく）

It cannot be used for natural results or processes nor good things.

Examples

Noun:

口論のあげくに殴り合いになった. (Weblio) – At the end of a long argument, we got into a fist fight.
検討のあげく、採用しないことにした – At the end of consideration, I’ve decided not to hire him.
あげくの果て、彼女と会えなかった – In the end, I couldn’t meet her. (Expression)

Adverb:

色々試したあげく、だめだった – Ultimately, After testing a lot of things, it was no good.
世界を旅した挙句、日本に住むことにした – After traveling the world, I decided to live in Japan.
4時間探した挙句、彼女を見つけなかった – Ultimately, After searching for 4 hours, I couldn’t find her.
たくさん酒を飲んだ挙句、廊下で寝てしまった – After drinking a lot, fell asleep in the hallway.
考えた挙句、聞くことになった – After thinking about it a while, I had to ask. (Waste of time thinking).

Differences Summary

あげく – Long process with a bad result
すえ – Long process with a good or bad result
結果 – Any kind of result, must be used for short or natural processes (Weather)

References/Additional Reading

BlogNihongo (Best layout, Japanese)
Hinative (Layman Japanese opinion)
EduJapa (Double Check source)
Weblio (Of course)
Edewakaru (Graphic comparison)