あなた

→⇒ Aleut: anatax̂ (“Japanese person”)

→ Hokkien: 阿娜達 /阿娜达 (a-na-ta, “dear”)

Early Modern Japanese
Kagerō Nikki
Kokin Wakashū
Late Middle Japanese
Michitsuna no Haha
Ochikubo Monogatari

Compound of あ (a, distal pronoun marker, indicating something far away from both speaker and listener; also found in あれ (are, “that”, far away), あそこ (asoko, “there”, far away), etc.) + な (na, possessive, ancient compounding alternative for (and possibly derived from) particle の (no)) + た (ta, “direction, side, place”, only found in ancient terms; possibly contracted from 方 (kata)).
Originally meant that direction, that side, that place (far away), in contrast to そなた (sonata, “that direction, that side, that place (closer to the listener)”), こなた (konata, “this direction, this side, this place (close to both listener and speaker)”), and どなた (donata, “which or what direction, side, or place”). Appears with this sense at least as early as the Kokin Wakashū of the late 900s, and the Kagerō Nikki of 974 CE.
The indirect and polite sense of that person is also evident in texts from the late 900s, including the Ochikubo Monogatari.
The sense of you as a polite and indirect form of reference appears in texts from around the 1750s.

compound

only found in ancient terms; possibly contracted from <i class="Jpan mention" lang="ja">方</i> (kata)

ja-r

貴方, 彼方: (uncommon) that person (far from both speaker and listener)


そこ

コンビニはすぐそこだよ。

振り向くとそこにはもう誰もいませんでした。

Furimuku to soko ni wa mō dare mo imasen deshita.

They turned around; there was already no one to be seen.

(anaphorically) The place, area, or part we are talking about. (either the speaker or the addressee knows)

(anaphorically) The organization or team we are talking about. (either the speaker or the addressee knows)


それ

Compound of そ (so, “that”, medial reference marker) + れ (-re, specific pronoun referent marker).

suffix

(anaphorically) the one we are talking about (either the speaker or the addressee knows)


あれ

From older kare → are. Compound of あ (a, “that, yon”) + れ (-re, nominalizing suffix for demonstratives).

あれはなんですか？

distal demonstrative, something far off removed from both speaker and listener: that, yon

(deictically) that one over there (far from the speaker and the addressee)

これはあれでしょ？○○。

(anaphorically) that one we both know (both the speaker and the addressee know)

(chiefly derogatory) third-person personal pronoun: he, she, that person


あれ

ja-adj

あれ or アレ • (are) -na (adnominal あれな (are na), adverbial あれに (are ni))

あれ (canonical)
アレ (canonical)
are (romanization)
あれな (adnominal)
あれに (adverbial)
あれだろ (imperfective stem)
are daro (imperfective stem)
あれで (continuative stem)
are de (continuative stem)
あれだ (stem terminative)
are da (stem terminative)
あれな (attributive stem)
are na (attributive stem)
あれなら (hypothetical stem)
are nara (hypothetical stem)
あれであれ (imperative stem)
are de are (imperative stem)
あれではない (informal negative)
あれじゃない (informal negative)
are de wa nai (informal negative)
are ja nai (informal negative)
あれだった (informal past)
are datta (informal past)
あれではなかった (informal negative past)
あれじゃなかった (informal negative past)
are de wa nakatta (informal negative past)
are ja nakatta (informal negative past)
あれです (formal)
are desu (formal)
あれではありません (formal negative)
あれじゃありません (formal negative)
are de wa arimasen (formal negative)
are ja arimasen (formal negative)
あれでした (formal past)
are deshita (formal past)
あれではありませんでした (formal negative past)
あれじゃありませんでした (formal negative past)
are de wa arimasen deshita (formal negative past)
are ja arimasen deshita (formal negative past)
あれで (conjunctive)
are de (conjunctive)
あれなら（ば） (conditional)
are nara (ba) (conditional)
あれだったら (conditional past)
are dattara (conditional past)
あれだろう (volitional)
are darō (volitional)
あれに (adverbial)
are ni (adverbial)
あれさ (noun-from-adj)
aresa (noun-from-adj)

ja-adj-infl

あれ

. で は ありません でした

. じゃ ありません でした

ちょっとあれな人

someone who's kind of you-know-what-I-mean

あれ, アレ: (informal, euphemistic) "you know what I mean"


あれ

The long form of あ (a, “I, me”). From あ (a) + れ (-re, nominalizing suffix)
Fell into disuse in roughly the Heian period, when it was replaced by われ (ware).

...と、聞こえ動かして、几帳のもとに、おし寄せたてまつりたれば、あれにもあらず、居給へるけはい...

(obsolete) first-person personal pronoun: I, me


貴方

貴方 (canonical)
kihō (romanization)
kifau (romanization)
きはう (hiragana historical)

/kipau/ → /kifau/ → /kifɔː/ → /kihoː/
From Middle Chinese 貴方 (MC kjw+jH pjang, “noble, superior + side, place, direction”).

ltc-l

(respectful, men's speech) you (used to address someone of equal social footing)

respectful; men's speech; respectful; men's speech


彼方

Compound of 彼 (ka, distal pronoun: "that one yonder", far from both speaker and listener) + な (na, old genitive / possessive marker) + た (ta, ancient morpheme indicating direction). Compare the formation of 日向 (hinata, “sunshine, a sunny place”, literally “sun's direction, sun-facing”), using the same genitive na and direction-marking ta.
First attested in 883.

compound

彼方の神、クルフィックス

that way; over there, far away, in the distance

he, she, it: general third-person pronoun, referring to a person or thing far from both speaker and listener

a time removed from the present, either in the past or in the future

[pronoun] the distant past

[pronoun] (archaic) a time far from the present


人

人 (canonical)
人 (canonical)
hito (romanization)
人 (counter)

⟨pi₁to₂⟩ → */pʲitə/ → /fito/ → /hito/ → /çito/
From Old Japanese, from Proto-Japonic *pitə.
First attested in the Kojiki of 712 CE.

someone who is very honest and straightforward


僕

僕 (canonical)
僕 (canonical)
boku (romanization)

Daijirin
Meiji period
Nihon Kokugo Daijiten

Shift in reading from the kun'yomi of shimobe or yatsugare to use the on'yomi of boku instead, first attested in kundoku contexts from the mid-to-late 1700s and becoming prevalent from around the Meiji period.

僕、迷子かな？

僕はいくつかな？

you, he, she (only used in reference to a person who uses this term to refer to themselves, or is one who is assumed to use it, such as a young boy)


君

form of address to fellow colleagues or inferiors


君

→ English: -kun

→ Chinese:

→ Mandarin: 君 (jūn)


君

君 (canonical)
kinji (romanization)
kindi (romanization)
きんぢ (hiragana historical)

/kimud͡ʑi/ → /kind͡ʑi/
Shift from older きむぢ (kimudi → kimuji).

きんぢ、この手を傳へ施す物ならば、この世になからん世なりとも、訪ひ守らん。

「[...] ある時は「きんぢがつたなく吾を人気なくハ生み出したる」とさへぞの給フや」

喜びて、見給ヒて、聲を放ちて「我が親の今々とし給ひしまで「我はきんぢを思ふにぞ黄泉もえ往くまじき。[...]」」


し

Cognate with demonstrative pronoun そ (so).

夕星乃 由布弊尓奈礼婆 伊射祢余登 手乎多豆佐波里 父母毛 表者奈佐我利 三枝之 中尓乎祢牟登 愛久 志我可多良倍婆

鵜河立 取左牟安由能 之我波多波 吾等尓可伎无気 念之念婆

八隅知之 吾大皇 秋花 之我色々尓 見賜 明米多麻比 酒見附 榮流今日之 安夜尓貴左

third person personal pronoun; he, she, it


だ

da (romanization)
だろ (imperfective stem)
では (imperfective stem)
daro (imperfective stem)
de wa (imperfective stem)
だっ (continuative stem)
で (continuative stem)
da' (continuative stem)
de (continuative stem)
だ (stem terminative)
da (stem terminative)
である (attributive stem)
な (attributive stem)
de aru (attributive stem)
であれ (hypothetical stem)
なら (hypothetical stem)
de are (hypothetical stem)
nara (hypothetical stem)
だろう (volitional)
darō (volitional)
ではない (negative)
じゃない (colloquial contraction negative)
でない (negative)
de wa nai (negative)
ja nai (colloquial contraction negative)
de nai (negative)
ではなくて (continuative negative)
じゃなくて (colloquial continuative contraction negative)
de wa nakute (continuative negative)
ja nakute (colloquial continuative contraction negative)
です (formal)
desu (formal)
だった (perfective)
datta (perfective)
で (conjunctive)
de (conjunctive)
ならば (conditional hypothetical)
であれば (conditional hypothetical)
naraba (conditional hypothetical)
de areba (conditional hypothetical)

* Forms beginning with だ or で: From the particle で (de) or である (de aru). The lemma form だ itself is a contraction of であ, clipping of である (de aru).
* Forms beginning with な: From classical Japanese なる (naru), whence Modern Japanese な (na, na-inflection ending).

じゃ

Some western dialects. Also used in archaic speech in fictional characters or as slang

ren'yōkei + た

with onbin sound changes for Group I verbs

+ で（は）なかったですnoun + で（は）ありませんでした

de [wa] nakatta desu; de [wa] arimasen deshita

彼は無実だ。

冬休みは明日からだ。

Winter vacation is from tomorrow. (Winter vacation starts from tomorrow.)

私が子供だった頃

美人で優しい人

大学生ならこれくらいはできるはずです。

Daigakusei nara kore kurai wa dekiru hazu desu.

This should be easy for a college student.

(auxiliary) Following parts of speech that do not inflect by themselves, including nouns, na-adjectives, adverbs and postpositional phrases.

汚物は消毒だ。

お代わりだ。

二度と来るんじゃない！

山をなめてはいけない。でないと死んじゃうよ。

Yama o namete wa ikenai. De nai to shinjau yo.

Don't underestimate the difficulty of mountaineering. If you do, you could die.

(auxiliary) Not following any words, but used before some conjunctives or in some inflected forms, to represent the aforementioned statement.


だ

2018, 青森県警察 [Aomori Prefectural Police], 方言を活用した広報標語: 交通事故防止広報 https://www.police.pref.aomori.jp/keimubu/kouhou/hyougo.html
な、だだば 通じなければ 偽息子
na, da daba tsūjinakereba nise-musuko
(Tsugaru and standard Japanese) "Who are you? [in Tsugaru dialect]" — if he doesn't understand, that's not your son


何

何 (canonical)
何 (canonical)
nani (romanization)

From Old Japanese, from Proto-Japonic *n-anu-.

that thing (used in place of words you can't remember at the moment.)


丸

alternative spelling of 麻呂 (maru): attaches to names of persons or objects expressing dearness


予

1802-1814: Tōkaidōchū Hizakurige (volume 1)
予此街道に毫をはせて膝栗毛の書を著す。
I, on this highway, in a little while, "Hizakurige"'s lyrics I'll write

1909, Isikawa Takuboku, Romazi Nikki
Yo wa Sai wo aisiteru; aisiteru kara koso kono Nikki wo yomase taku nai no da.

I love my Wife; it is precisely because I love her that I do not want her to read this Diary.


俺

俺 (canonical)
俺 (canonical)
ore (romanization)

Daijirin
Kamakura period
Kojiki
Muromachi period

From Old Japanese. Originally a second person pronoun, as used in the Kojiki of 712 CE. Thought to have gradually changed into a first person pronoun from roughly the Kamakura and Muromachi periods. Some scholars, however, point out the lack of precedent of a second-person pronoun shifting to a first-person pronoun as an etymological discontinuity; they instead explain the first-person usage as an early corruption of 己 (onore, “I, me”), with the ancient second-person usage perhaps deriving of a different root.

おれら

orera, explicitly plural first- or second-person pronoun

1905, Natsume Sōseki, 吾輩は猫である [I Am a Cat]:

My owner, who had until then been silent, suddenly seemed to take interest in the photo and asked "Hey, let me see it too."

最前から黙っていた主人はこの時急に写真が見たくなったものと見えて「おい俺にもちょっと覧せろ」と云う

saizen kara damatte ita shujin wa kono toki kyū ni shashin ga mitaku natta mono to miete “oi ore ni mo chotto misero” to iu


儞

Daijirin
Daijisen
Extended shinjitai
Heian period
ja:松村明

From Old Japanese. Found in use mostly from ancient times until roughly the Heian period, used to refer in the second person to social inferiors or to insult.
The second person sense of you appears to be obsolete in modern Japanese.
Not to be confused with the modern term 俺 (ore) with the first person sense of I, me. See 俺 for that sense.

(archaic, vulgar) alternative form of 爾: you


兄

*/kwæi/ → /kʷæi/ → /keː/
From Middle Chinese 兄 (MC xjwaeng).

pronoun referencing an older brother figure: you, he


内

From Old Japanese, from Proto-Japonic *utui.


命

命 (canonical)
mikoto (romanization)
尊 (alternative)

From Old Japanese. Originally a compound of 御 (mi-, honorific prefix) + 事 (koto, “abstract thing”, as opposed to 物, mono, “concrete thing”).


妾

世間妾形気

世間妾形気 せけんてかけかたぎ

For pronunciation and definitions of 妾 – see the following entry: おんなめ


妾

ja-noun

妾(しょう) • (shō)


妾

ja-pos

妾(しょう) • (shō)


子

子 (canonical)
子 (canonical)
shi (romanization)
su (romanization)

From Middle Chinese 子 (MC tsiX), also used in the Man'yōshū (c. 759 CE) as 借音 (shakuon) kana for ⟨si⟩. Compare modern Mandarin 子 (zǐ).
The goon reading of shi is likely the original borrowing:
: /t͡sɨ/ → /sɨ/ → */ɕɨ/ → /ɕi/
The tōon reading su appears later, and only shows up in certain set terms borrowed from Chinese, where it seems to serve as a kind of nominalizing suffix:
: /t͡sɨ/ → /sɨ/ → */sʉ/ → /su/

子実体

the sporocarp or fruiting body of certain fungi

子葉

cotyledon or seed leaf, the first leaf of a sprouting plant

烏帽子

formal black peaked cap worn by nobility

short for 子爵 (shishaku): the fourth rank of nobility in Meiji-postwar Japan, equivalent to a viscount

子爵

a philosophy branch of Chinese literature, either derived from or outside of the Hundred Schools of Thought


子

(archaic) second-person pronoun: you (of one's equals)


子

(Chinese astrology) Rat, the first of the twelve Earthly Branches


尊

From Old Japanese.
Derived from 御 (mi-, honorific prefix) + 事 (koto, “thing, matter”).


己

Originally a compound of 土 (tsuchi, “earth”, one of the Chinese five elements) + の (no, possessive particle) + 弟 (oto, “younger brother”).


彼

distal demonstrative, something far off removed from both speaker and listener: that, yon


彼

From Old Japanese. Compound of 彼 (ka, “that, yon”) + れ (-re, nominalizing suffix for demonstratives). Found in the Man'yōshū compiled around 759.
The sense development seems to have proceeded from "that thing over there" to "that person over there [of indeterminate gender]". The specifically male sense of "he" only arose later during the late Edo period and early Meiji period, influenced by translations of texts from European languages.

suffix

[pronoun] third-person personal pronoun: he

[interjection] huh?

expression of surprise and confusion when talking to yourself

[pronoun] sex

[pronoun] you-know-what; a thing whose name the speaker does not want to mention

於伎敝欲里 美知久流之保能 伊也麻之尓 安我毛布支見我 弥不根可母加礼

[pronoun] that one over there

[pronoun] distal demonstrative, something far off removed from both speaker and listener: that, yon

particularly, male personal third person pronoun: he

third person pronoun: he, she
by extension from he: boyfriend


愚

1900, 田中正造, 亡國に至るを知らざれば之れ即ち亡國の儀に付質問, 青空文庫:

[…] 己の愚を知れば則ち愚にあらず、己の愚なることを知らなければ是が眞の愚である。

[…] onore no gu o shireba sunawachi gu ni arazu, onore no gu naru koto o shiranakereba kore ga shin no gu de aru.

[…] if you know your own foolishness, then you are not foolish. If you do not know that you are foolish, this is true foolishness.


我

From Old Japanese, as the long form of 我 (wa) below.
Compound of 我 (wa, see below) + れ (-re, nominalizing suffix).

first person singular pronoun: I, me, oneself

(usually vulgar) second person singular pronoun: you


我

棟方志功
わだばゴッホになる
wa daba gohho ni naru
(Aomori) I'll be a Gogh

personal pronoun
personal pronoun#English

(obsolete or dialect) first-person personal pronoun: I, me

[pronoun] first-person personal pronoun: I


敵

From Middle Chinese 敵 (MC dek). First cited in Japanese to the early 1200s.

的: (historical) in the red-light district, a term of reference used between prostitutes and customers


敵

的: (historical, chiefly Kansai, somewhat derogatory) (by extension from the red-light district usage) term of third-person reference: that guy, that one, he, she, it

的: (historical, chiefly Kansai, somewhat derogatory) (by extension from the red-light district usage) term of second-person reference: you


朕

Kyūjitai
Second World War
Shinjitai
Tōkyō

朕は国家なり

1945 August 15, Emperor Shōwa, 大東亜戦争終結ノ詔書 [Gyokuon-hōsō]:

To our good and loyal subjects, after pondering deeply the general trends of the world and the actual conditions obtaining in our empire today, we have decided to effect a settlement of the present situation by resorting to an extraordinary measure.

朕深ク世界ノ大勢ト帝國ノ現狀トニ鑑ミ非常ノ措置ヲ以テ時局ヲ收拾セムト欲シ茲ニ忠良ナル爾臣民ニ告グ

Chin fukaku sekai no taisei to teikoku no genjō to ni kangami hijō no sochi o motte jikyoku o shūshū semu to hosshi koko ni chūryō naru nanji shinmin ni tsugu

(imperial) I, me (similar to the royal we)


某

某大学

certain (denoting that the speaker is referring to a specific person or thing that they do not want to name directly, implying that the listener should infer the identity of the referent)


某

ja-noun

某(ぼう) • (bō)

(literary) a certain person or thing; a so-and-so


某

(obsolete) someone; somebody; a certain person


正

A number of ten-duodecillion (10⁴⁰) in modern Japanese since 17th century.


汝

Sound shift from reflexive pronoun 己 (ono), Old Japanese 己 (ono₂).

(vulgar) used as an insult to the second person: you!


爾

Daijisen
Extended shinjitai
Heian period
ja:松村明

From Old Japanese, found in use mostly from ancient times until roughly the Heian period, used to refer in the second person to social inferiors or to insult.
The second person sense of you appears to be obsolete in modern Japanese.

(archaic, vulgar) second person pronoun: you


生

From Middle Chinese 生 (MC sraeng|sraengH, “alive; fresh; raw; unprocessed”). The 漢音 (kan'on) reading, so likely a later borrowing from Middle Chinese.

ltc-l

(humble) I or me, the first person singular (used by males)


私

Daijisen
Edo period
Muromachi period
ja:松村明

Shift from watakushi below.
This reading was already prevalent in early modern times, possibly around the mid-late Muromachi to early-Edo period.

私はイギリス人です。

(polite) first-person singular pronoun: I, me


私

[β̞a̠ta̠kɯ̟̊ɕi]

From Old Japanese 私 (watakusi).
A surface analysis suggests a compound term. However, no likely etyma are known.
* From first-person pronoun 我 (wa, “I, me”) + takusi: although the first element seems likely, the original meaning of watakushi was “private”, as opposed to “public”, with no first-person pronoun usage until the late 13th century.
* From 我(わ) (wa, “I, me”) + つ (tsu, “genetive marker”), and the other parts remains unknown.
* From wata + kusi: the only phonetic matches are 綿 (wata, “cotton; cotton batting”), 腸 (wata, “guts, one's innards”, likely derived from the “batting” sense), 海 (wata, “sea, ocean”) + 串 (kusi, “skewer”), 奇し (kusi, “magic, fantastic, supernatural”, adjective), 酒 (kusi, “alcoholic beverage”, likely derived from the “magic” sense), 櫛 (kusi, “comb”).
* The first element may comes from 内(うち) (uchi, “one's own, my, our”), and the second element remains unknown.
The meaning evolved over time from “private” or “privatization”, to refer to things that are personal, to refer to one's own person, and then finally to serve as a generic first-person pronoun. The full form watakushi is still used in modern Japanese as a formal, highly polite first-person pronoun. The abbreviated form watashi is now the most common and neutrally polite first-person pronoun.

私雨

sudden rain shower falling in just a small area

私金

personal money, secret savings, financial nest egg

私戯れ

chatting up a go-between or mediator, as an aside to the main issue being mediated


私

[β̞a̠ta̠kɯ̟̊ɕi]

(formal) first-person singular pronoun: I, me


翁

翁 (canonical)
ō (romanization)
wou (romanization)
をう (hiragana historical)

From Middle Chinese 翁 (MC 'uwng).
The kan'on pronunciation, so likely a later borrowing.


翁

翁 (canonical)
-ō (romanization)
-wou (romanization)
をう (hiragana historical)


臣

From Middle Chinese 臣 (MC dzyin).
Compare modern Mandarin 臣 (chén).

(humble, historical or archaic) I, me; your servant (humble pronoun, especially when speaking to a monarch)


蒙

ja-noun

蒙(もう) • (mō)

the fourth of the sixty-four hexagrams of the I Ching ䷃


誰

/tare/ → /dare/
From earlier tare.
The dare form appears from around the Edo period. The voicing of the initial /t-/ to /d-/ is likely by analogy with other interrogative demonstratives 何れ (dore, “which one”), 何処 (doko, “where”). See etymology 2
Now the primary form, replacing earlier tare.

誰が誰を作ったのか

お前は…誰だ？俺は どうしてここに来た？あいつに…あいつに会うために来た。助けるために来た。生きていてほしかった。誰だ？誰？誰に会いに来た？大事な人、忘れたくない人、忘れちゃダメな人！誰だ？誰だ？誰だ…誰だ⁉名前は⁉

2016, Makoto Shinkai, director, 君の名は。 [your name.], spoken by Taki Tachibana (Ryūnosuke Kamiki), Toho:

Who… are you? Why did I come here? To see her… I came to see her. I came to save her. I wanted her to live. Who was it? Who? Who did I come to see? Someone dear to me, someone I don't wanna forget, someone I must not forget! Who was it? Who was it? Who was it… Who⁉ What's your name⁉

O-mae wa… dare da? Ore wa dōshite koko ni kita? Aitsu ni… Aitsu ni au tame ni kita. Tasukeru tame ni kita. Ikite ite hoshikatta. Dare da? Dare da? Dare ni ai ni kita? Daiji na hito, wasuretakunai hito, wasurecha dame na hito! Dare da? Dare da? Dare da… Dare da⁉ Namae wa⁉

誰？誰？あの人は誰？大事な人、忘れちゃダメな人、忘れたくなかった人！誰？誰？君は誰？君の名前は⁉

2016, Makoto Shinkai, director, 君の名は。 [your name.], spoken by Mitsuha Miyamizu (Mone Kamishiraishi), Toho:

Who was it? Who? Who was he? Someone I hold dear, someone I must not forget, someone I did not want to forget! Who was he? Who? Who are you? What is your name⁉

Dare? Dare? Ano hito wa dare? Daiji na hito, wasurecha dame na hito, wasuretakunakatta hito! Dare? Dare? Kimi wa dare? Kimi no namae wa⁉

interrogative personal pronoun: who, whom


誰

From Old Japanese, first attested in the Kojiki (712 CE) alongside its older form ta (see below).
Derived from older 誰 (ta, “who”) + れ (re, “thing”, demonstrative nominalizer ending). Compare the formation of これ (kore, “this”) from 此 (ko, “this”) + れ, 彼 (kare, “that one, that person”) from 彼 (ka, “that”) + れ (re), etc.
Superseded by dare above starting from around the Edo period. The tare form does not appear to be used anymore outside of poetry or intentionally archaic text.

(archaic) interrogative personal pronoun: who, whom


誰

From Old Japanese, first attested in the Kojiki, completed roughly 712 CE.
Appears to be the oldest form.

(obsolete, persists in some fossilized expressions) interrogative personal pronoun: who, whom


遠

遠 (canonical)
ochi (romanization)
woti (romanization)
をち (hiragana historical)

/woti/ → /wot͡ɕi/ → /ot͡ɕi/
From Old Japanese.

(archaic) a time far from the present
the distant past

(archaic) a time far from the present
the far-off future


遠

遠 (canonical)
oto (romanization)
woto (romanization)
をと (hiragana historical)

Daijisen Kyūjitai Shinjitai Tōkyō ja:松村明 Ōsaka

⟨woto₂⟩ → */wotə/ → /woto/ → /oto/
Shift from Old Japanese ochi, ancient woti; see above.


鼻

Kyūjitai
Proto-Japonic language
Shinjitai

From Proto-Japonic *pana. The sense as a pronoun is from pointing to one's nose to refer to oneself.

first-person personal male pronoun; I, me


あ

/ka/ → /a/
Shift in pronunciation from か (ka). Appears from the Heian period.

distal demonstrative, something far off removed from both speaker and listener: that, yon


さ

c. late 10th century Taketori Monogatari
翁言ふやう、「御迎へに來む人をば、長き爪して、眼をつかみ潰さん。 さが髪をとりて、かなぐり落とさむ。さが尻をかき出でて、ここらの公人に見せて、恥を見せん」と腹立ちをる。


そ

Derived in the Heian period from writing the man'yōgana kanji 曽 in the cursive sōsho style.

ja-kana-mannyogana-etym

The hiragana syllable そ (so). Its equivalent in katakana is ソ (so). It is the fifteenth syllable in the gojūon order; its position is さ行お段 (sa-gyō o-dan, “row sa, section o”).


こ

子 小 粉 籠 木 濃 海鼠 蚕 処

Derived in the Heian period from writing the man'yōgana kanji 己 in the cursive sōsho style.

The hiragana syllable こ (ko). Its equivalent in katakana is コ (ko). It is the tenth syllable in the gojūon order; its position is か行お段 (ka-gyō o-dan, “row ka, section o”).

[noun] person who is deal card

hanafuda, card game, by extension, board game

[prefix] an object which has a subservient

derivative role relative to another object

[suffix] suffix used in female given name

[suffix] suffix used in male given names

[suffix] an object having a particular state

[suffix] roe

only when preceded by a fish name, or fish-related prefix

For a list of all kanji read as こ

This term, こ (ko), is the hiragana spelling of the above terms.


よ

Derived in the Heian period from writing the man'yōgana kanji 与 in the cursive sōsho style.

The hiragana syllable よ (yo). Its equivalent in katakana is ヨ (yo). It is the thirty-eighth syllable in the gojūon order; its position is や行お段 (ya-gyō o-dan, “row ya, section o”).


よ

「ポレット先生はいますか。」「はい、いますよ。」

“Poretto sensei wa imasu ka.”“Hai, imasu yo.”

"Is Mr. Pollett here?" "Yes, [I'm certain that] he is here."

そうじゃないよ！

Indicates certainty, conviction, or emphasis.

雨よ雪に変わってくれ。

『神よツァーリを護り給え』

「万国の労働者よ、団結せよ！」

(literary, poetic) Used as a vocative particle to address the topic in question: O.


ぼう

昴: one of the 28 traditional Japanese constellations, the Pleiades


こちら

From こち (kochi, “this direction (or person)”) + 等 (-ra, suffix of rough indication or approximation).

suffix

https://www.nttdocomo.co.jp/binary/pdf/support/trouble/manual/network/english_guidance.pdf
こちらは、NTTドコモです。おかけになった電話番号は、現在使われておりません。
Kochira wa, Enu-Tī-Tī Dokomo desu. O-kake ni natta denwa bangō wa, genzai tsukawarete orimasen.
This is NTT Docomo. The number you have dialed is currently not in service.


いつ

From Old Japanese, from Proto-Japonic *Etu. Appears in the Man'yōshū, completed some time after 759 CE.
The presence of other Old Japanese indefinites beginning with い (i) suggests a possible shared root of い (i, possibly “what” or “which”), as in 如何 (ikaga, “how”), 何処 (izuko, “where”), 幾ら (ikura, “how many, how much”).
Likely cognate with eastern Old Japanese word idu (modern idzu or izu, “where”), still used in modern Japanese as part of the word いずれ (izure, “which”).

いつ日本へ来ましたか。


何時

Compound of 何 (nan, “what”) + 時 (ji, “hour”). The nan portion is derived from Old Japanese 何 (nani, “what”), while the ji portion is derived from Middle Chinese 時 (MC dzyi).

der+

今何時ですか?

お前きょう何時に帰るて言うた!?

2019, “Ikezu (いけず)”, performed by Otoboke Beaver:

What time did you tell me you'd be home!?


何時

Compound of 何 (nan, “what”) + 時 (toki, “time”). The toki changes to doki as an instance of rendaku (連濁).


これ

⟨ko₂re⟩ → /kore/
From Old Japanese. Compare Okinawan くり (kuri) and Northern Amami Ōshima くるぃ (kurï).

(anaphorically) this one I am talking about (only the speaker knows)


あそこ

Heian period
Nihon Kokugo Daijiten
Utsubo Monogatari

Shift from earlier あしこ (ashiko). The asoko form appears in the Utsubo Monogatari of the late 900s, during the Heian period.

(slang, by extension from the sense of “down there”) genitals


あたし

1989 November 10 [1988 May 25], Fujiko F. Fujio, “第一話 スーパーマン襲名 [Chapter 1: Taking on the Mantle of Superman]”, in 征地球論 [A Debate over Conquering Earth] (藤子・Ｆ・不二雄 ＳＦ全短編; 3), 2nd edition, volume 3 (fiction), Tokyo: Chuokoronsha, →ISBN, 第三章 中年スーパーマン左江内氏, page 365:

あたしやスーパーマンです

(chiefly women's speech) first person singular pronoun: I, me


あちら

From archaic あち (achi) + 等(ら) (ra, “about; around; approximately”).

ja-r

皆さま、あちらをごらんください

Everybody, please look in that direction.

彼方: that way; that over there, far away, in the distance

あちらがお父さまですか


こい

Cognate with standard Japanese これ (kore, “this thing”).

1984 November 15, Motoka Murakami, “示(じ)現(げん)流(りゅう)・日(ひ)高(だか)の巻(まき) [Hidaka of Jigen Style]”, in 六(ム)三(サ)四(シ)の剣(けん) [Musashi’s Sword], volume 17 (fiction), Tokyo: Shogakukan, →ISBN, page 37:

Dis post’s made o’ hard chinkapin wood. It’s 173 to 182 cm tall, about an adult’s height, and 15 cm wide.

こいは堅か椎の木じゃっ。高さは人ん背丈と同じ173～182センチ直径は15センチ。

ひゃくななじゅうさん～ひゃくはちじゅうに

Koi wa kataka shī no ki ja'. Takasa wa hiton setake to onaji hyakunanajūsan~hyakuhachijūni senchi chokkei wa jūgo senchi.


わい

Generally regarded as a shift from わし (washi), itself from 私 (watashi, “I, me”). First cited in a text from 1920, but likely older.
The second-person sense of you likely arose via the same general indirection mechanisms that gave rise to all Japanese personal pronouns. Consider also ancient 汝 (na) or more modern 己 (onore), used for both first- and second-person referral. This usage is first cited in a text from 1923, but is likely older.

(dialect, Kansai, Kagoshima; or Internet slang) I, me (first-person pronoun, mainly used by males)


こち

⟨ko₂ti⟩ → */kəti/ → /kot͡ɕi/
From Old Japanese.
Derived from 此 (ko, “this”, refers to object(s) near the speaker) + ち (-chi, suffix indicating direction).

suffix

(archaic) first-person pronoun: I, me; we, us


彼処

From Old Japanese. Appears to be a compound of 彼 (a, “that one over there”, distal marker, indicating something distant from both speaker and listener) + し (shi, possibly the directional marker found in terms such as 昔 (mukashi, “ancient times”), 縦し (tatashi, “the standing or vertical direction”), 横し (yokoshi, “the sideways or horizontal direction”)) + 処 (ko, “place”). May be the older form of modern asoko below.

compound

彼処に籠りなむのち

(obsolete) yon place, that place yonder, that place over there, that area over there, that part over there


彼処

Appears to be a compound of 彼 (a, “that one over there”, distal marker, indicating something distant from both speaker and listener) + 処 (ko, “place”). First appears in the late 1500s, early 1600s, and used mostly in the Kansai region. Given the historical tendency for innovation in the Kansai region, the term may instead derive as an abbreviation of asoko above, by analogy with the -ko suffix in ここ (koko, “here”) and そこ (soko, “there”, closer to the listener than to the speaker).

(dialectal) yon place, that place yonder, that place over there, that area over there, that part over there


彼処

Either a shift in pronunciation from asoko, or from ashiko.

(rare, dialect, Hakata) yon place, that place yonder, that place over there, that area over there, that part over there


彼処

Compound of 彼 (ka, “that one over there”, distal marker, indicating something distant from both speaker and listener) + 処 (ko, “place”).

彼処を退き去る也

1483, 地蔵菩薩霊験絵詞 (Jizō Bosatsu Reigen Eshi, “Jizō Bodhisattva Miracle Picture-scroll”)

(rare, obsolete) yon place, that place yonder, that place over there, that area over there, that part over there


彼処

Appears to be a compound of 彼 (ka, “that one over there”, distal marker, indicating something distant from both speaker and listener) + し (shi, possibly the directional marker found in terms such as 昔 (mukashi, “ancient times”), 縦し (tatashi, “the standing or vertical direction”), 横し (yokoshi, “the sideways or horizontal direction”)) + 処 (ko, “place”).

(rare) yon place, that place yonder, that place over there, that area over there, that part over there


ここ

ここ (canonical)
こゝ (canonical)
koko (romanization)

1985 December 20, Taeko Watanabe, “第(だい)四(よん)十(じゅう)八(はち)話(わ) 家(か)族(ぞく) Ⅰ(いち) [Chapter 48: Family I]”, in ファミリー！ [Family!], volume 11 (fiction), Tokyo: Shogakukan, →ISBN, page 72:

I came here (to LA) from Seattle… to look for my son …I am —Jonathan Allen’s father

シアトルからＬＡへは…息子を尋ねてきました…ぼくは———ジョナサン・アレンの父親です

Shiatoru kara koko e wa… musuko o tazunetekimashita …Boku wa ———Jonasan Aren no chichioya desu

2004 August 17, CLAMP, “Chapitre(シャピトル).46(よんじゅうろく) 夢(ゆめ)の世(せ)界(かい) [Chapitre 46: Dream World]”, in ツバサ ＲＥＳＥＲＶｏｉｒ ＣＨＲｏＮｉＣＬＥ [Tsubasa: Reservoir Chronicle], volume 7 (fiction), Tokyo: Kodansha, →ISBN, page 91:

ここは桜花国にある妖精遊園地

妖精遊園地 フェアリーパーク

(deictically) here; this place, area, or part (near the speaker) (Can be juxtaposed with a phrase with で (de) or に (ni).)

(deictically) this organization or team (near or associated with the speaker) (Can be juxtaposed with a phrase with で (de) or に (ni).)

c. 1368, 太平記 [Taiheiki, Chronicle of Peace], first scroll:

1. Prospering of the family during the reign of Emperor Godaigo
Here first appearing in the court of Emperor Jimmu, the 95th mikado, who reigned as Emperor Godaigo, there is military retainer Sagami Taira Takatoki.

1 後醍醐天皇御治世事付武家繁昌事
爰に本朝人皇の始、神武天皇より九十五代の帝、後醍醐天皇の御宇に当て、武臣相摸守平高時と云者あり。

1 Godaigo Tennō gochisei koto tsuki buke hanjō koto
Koko ni Honchō Jinnō no hajime, Jinmu Tennō yori kyūjūgodai no mikado, Godaigo Tennō no gyō ni ate, fushin Sagami Taira Takatoki to unsha ari.

(anaphorically) here; this place, area, or part I am talking about

(anaphorically) this organization or team I am talking about


彼女

ja-pos

彼(かの)女(じょ) • (kanojo) ^(←かのぢよ (kanodyo)?)

彼女 (canonical)
kanojo (romanization)
kanodyo (romanization)
かのぢよ (hiragana historical)

Daijirin
Daijisen
Edo period
Taishō period
ja:彼女
ja:松村明

First appears in writing in the late Edo period as a compound of 彼の (kano, ano, “that”) + 女 (onna, “woman”) with the reading kano onna or ano onna, simply meaning “that woman”. The kanojo reading arose by replacing the kun'yomi reading of onna for the second character with its on'yomi of jo. The first written appearance of the kanojo reading is in 1876, in the 改正画引小学読本 (Kaisei Gakubiki Shōgaku Dokuhon, “Revised Stroke-ordered Elementary-school Reader”). The first clear use of this term as a pronoun is around 1888, arising out of influence from Western works. The kanojo reading became more common and replaced kano onna and ano onna during the Taishō period (1912-1926).

com

彼氏彼女の事情

1988 July 30 [1984 July 25], Fujiko F. Fujio, “ふたりぼっち [Altwo]”, in ポストの中の明日 [Post-Mid-Tomorrow] (藤子不二雄少年SF短編集; 2), 10th edition, volume 2 (fiction), Tokyo: Shogakukan, →ISBN, page 191:

“She showed interest in my ‘History of Cosmic Reclamation’”

「彼女はぼくの『宇宙開拓史』に興味を示した」

“Kanojo wa boku no ‘Uchū Kaitakushi’ ni kyōmi o shimeshita”

やはり彼(かの)女(じょ)が大(だい)事(じ)な実(じっ)験(けん)体(たい)だからか？裂き喰らう城(ピルム・ムーリアリス)

Kore Yamazaki, “第(だい)5(ご)篇(へん) Misfortunes seldom come singly. [Composition 5: Misfortunes seldom come singly.]”, in 魔法使いの嫁(The Ancient Magus Bride) [The Ancient Magus’ Bride], volume 1 (fiction), Tokyo: Mag Garden, page 174:

After all, she’s your indispensable specimen, right? Pilum murialis

Yahari kanojo ga daiji na jikkentai dakara ka? Pirumu mūriarisu

2004 February 6, “レオニンのシカール [Leonin Shikari]”, in ダークスティール [Darksteel], Wizards of the Coast:

彼女の本能は、その刃ほども鋭い。

Kanojo no honnō wa, sono yaiba hodo mo surudoi.

2016 July 22, “エムラクールの加(か)護(ご) [Boon of Emrakul]”, in 異界月 [Eldritch Moon], Wizards of the Coast:

All around Emrakul, life re-formed in her image.

エムラクールの周囲では、彼女の想像に合わせて生命が形を変える。

Emurakūru no shūi de wa, kanojo no sōzō ni awasete seimei ga katachi o kaeru.

(formal) Female third-person singular pronoun; she, her


手前

手前 (canonical)
temae (romanization)
temafe (romanization)
てまへ (hiragana historical)

Compound of Old Japanese elements 手 (te, “hand”) + 前 (mae, “front”), originally meaning “that which is just in front of one's hand”.

あの店は交差点の手前にある。

That store is just in front of the intersection.

position that is just in front or before; in the nearer position


手前

(dated, humble, men's speech) I, me (who stands before you)

(rare, informal, sometimes derogatory) you


手前

Daijirin
Kyōsuke Kindaichi
Yamanote and Shitamachi#Speech

Corruption of temae. The vowel shift emphasizes the confrontational sense of the term. This flattening of diphthongs to monophthongs is characteristic of Tokyo's Shitamachi dialect. Compare おめえ (omē, from お前 (omae)), ねえ (nē, from ない), やべえ (yabē, from やばい (yabai)).

手前、何しやがったんだ！

(vulgar, derogatory, men's speech) you, you son of a bitch, you bastard


どれ

/idure/ → /idore/ → /dore/
Shift from いずれ (izure).
Compare development of 何処 (izuko → doko, “where”).

demonstrative pronoun
demonstrative pronoun

indeterminate demonstrative pronoun:
which... (of three or more choices)

indeterminate demonstrative pronoun:
which way...; where...

indeterminate personal pronoun:
which... (three or more persons)

indeterminate personal pronoun:
(by) who...


どれ

a filled pause in speech:
let me see, ...; let's see, ...


貴様

Compound of 貴 (ki-, honorific prefix) + 様 (sama, honorific suffix).
First cited to a Japanese-Portuguese dictionary of the early 1600s, and likely existent some time earlier.
Originally used as a term of honor and respect in the correspondence of samurai households, used to refer to social superiors. Later became a more colloquial term, and by the late Edo period, it was used to refer to social equals or even inferiors. Now in modern usage, this is used almost exclusively by males in a pejorative context.

prefix

喧嘩売ってんのか貴様は？

Are you trying to pick a fight, bastard?

(vulgar, derogatory, men's speech) you, you SOB, you bastard

Daijisen#Online_search_engines
Edo period
Kōjien
Nihon Kokugo Daijiten
Shinmura Izuru


彼ら

彼らは車から離れた。


我々

[β̞a̠ɾe̞β̞a̠ɾe̞]

2012 July 13, “アジャニの陽(よう)光(こう)弾(ひき)手(て) [Ajani’s Sunstriker]”, in 基本セット2013 [Core Set 2013], Wizards of the Coast:

“Ajani goes where he has to go, and in his name we keep his lands safe.”

「アジャニは行かねばならないところに行き、我々は彼の名の下に彼の土地を守る。」

“Ajani wa ikaneba naranai tokoro ni iki, wareware wa kare no na no moto ni kare no tochi o mamoru.”


何歳

From 何(なん) (nan, “what”) + 歳(さい) (sai, “age”).

ja-com

何歳ですか？

How old are you? (Literally, "what age are you?")


諸君

(men's speech) all of you men (below the speaker in rank; sometimes gender neutral)


御中

Compound of 御 (on-, honorific prefix) + 中 (chū, “inside; middle”).

prefix

三菱重工御中…

Messrs. Mitsubishi Heavy Industries / Dear sirs at Mitsubishi Heavy Industries […]

(formal) dear sirs, Messrs. (form of address used in formal letters, placed after the name of the organization to address members of that organization)


鼻様

Compound of 鼻 (hana, “nose”) + 様 (sama, honorific). From the practice of pointing to one's nose to refer to oneself.

an arrogant, proud first person personal pronoun; I, me, myself.


どこ

⟨iduku⟩ → /id͡zuku/ → /id͡zuko/ → /idoko/ → /doko/
Shift from earlier いどこ (idoko) and いずこ (izuko), ultimately from Old Japanese-derived いずく (izuku) of the same meaning; by analogy of pronouns ここ (koko) and そこ (soko) having two morae in length, therefore the drop of the initial i-.
Compare the shift of いずち (izuchi) → どちら (dochira).

新宿駅はどこですか。

アメリカの首都はどこですか。

Which city is the capital of the United States?

どこが痛いですか。

interrogative pronoun
interrogative pronoun#English

points to unknown or unspecified locations: where..., which [[[noun]]]...

今夜はどことどこが戦いますか。

Kon'ya wa doko to doko ga tatakaimasu ka.

points to objects belonging to an uncertain group: which [[[collective noun]]]...

demonstrative pronoun
demonstrative pronoun#English

(added before a particle) indefinite demonstrative pronoun: anywhere, everywhere, somewhere


私達

私達 (canonical)
watashitachi (romanization)

私 (watashi, “I; me”) + 達 (-tachi, pluralizer)

suf

お(・)守(まも(・))り(・)を(・)隠(かく(・))し(・)て(・) わ(・)た(・)し(・)た(・)ち(・)と(・)み(・)お(・)を(・)引(ひ(・))き(・)離(はな(・))し(・)て(・) ど(・)う(・)す(・)る(・)気(き(・))だ(・)っ(・)た(・)ん(・)で(・)す(・)か(・)…？

2010 October 24, Tsutsui, Taishi, “第21幕 無常の風 [Act 21: Uneasy Wind]”, in エスプリト [Esprit], volume 6 (fiction), Tokyo: Mag Garden, →ISBN, page 133:

HIDE THAT AMULET TO SEPARATE US FROM MIO, WAS THAT WHAT YOU WERE TRYING TO DO…?

OMAMORI O KAKUSHITE WATASHITACHI TO MIO O HIKIHANASHITE DŌ SURU KI DATTAN DESU KA…?


私達

私達 (canonical)
watakushitachi (romanization)

[β̞a̠ta̠kɯ̟̊ɕita̠t͡ɕi]

私 (watakushi, “I; me”) + 達 (-tachi, pluralizer)


僕達

From 僕(ぼく) (boku, “I, me”) + 達(たち) (-tachi, plural marker).


なに

これを見て、舟より下りて、「山の名を何（なに）とか申」と問ふ。女答へていはく、「これは蓬萊の山なり」と答ふ。

c. late 9th-mid-10th century, Taketori Monogatari:

Seeing this, having gotten off the ship, he asked "What do you call this mountain?" The woman answered, "This is the Hōrai mountain".

なに仰る。いま金すこしにこそあなれ。かならずをくるべき物にこそあなれ。

What do you say? Now is the time to invest in a little money. Be sure to be what is to come.


何か

何か (canonical)
何か (canonical)
nanika (romanization)
nanka (romanization)

何かちょうだい。

彼、私のこと何か言ってました？

Kare, watashi no koto nanika ittemashita?


吾輩

吾輩は猫である。名前はまだ無い。

Wagahai wa neko de aru. Namae wa mada nai.


什麼

From spoken Middle Chinese 恁麼 /恁么 (nyim^X muɑ, “what?”, archaic). The spelling shifted to include the Chinese synonym 什麼 /什么 (modern Mandarin reading of shénme), while keeping the inmo reading for 恁麼 /恁么 (rènme), instead of the expected reading for 什麼.
Imported into Japanese by Zen monks who had studied in China. Generally restricted to use by Zen practitioners.

1906, 夏目漱石 (Natsume Sōseki), 吾輩は猫である (Wagahai wa neko de aru), 青空文庫 (Aozora Bunko):

天地と我と什麼の交渉かある。

What is the relation between the universe and me?


野郎

野郎 (canonical)
yarō (romanization)
yarau (romanization)
やらう (hiragana historical)

(informal, vulgar, derogatory) that son of a bitch, that bastard, that jerk, that motherfucker, that rascal, that scoundrel


お宅

Compound of 御 (o-, honorific prefix, kun'yomi) + 宅 (taku, “home”, on'yomi).


我ら

[β̞a̠ɾe̞ɾa̠]

1593, Aesop, Esopo Athenasno fitobitoni nobetaru tatoyeno coto (Esopono fabulas):

我らに主人が無いによって

2010 July 16, “アジャニの群(む)れ仲(なか)間(ま) [Ajani’s Pridemate]”, in 基本セット2011 [Core Set 2011], Wizards of the Coast:

When one of us prospers, the pride prospers.

我らのうちいずれかが繁栄する時、群れも繁栄する。

Warera no uchi izureka ga han'eisuru toki, mure mo han'eisuru.


そいつ

(familiar, rude) he, that guy; that person


自ら

ja-pos

自(みずか)ら • (mizukara) ^(←みづから (midukara)?)

自ら (canonical)
mizukara (romanization)
midukara (romanization)
みづから (hiragana historical)

⟨mi₂ tu kara⟩ → */mʷɨdukara/ → /mid͡zukara/ → /mizukara/
Originally a compound of 身 (mi, “body”) + つ (tsu, Old Japanese possessive particle) + 柄 (kara, “quality, characteristic → by itself”).
The okurigana ら (ra) is used to indicate the reading.


貴女

(honorific, to a female of high rank) you


皆さん

From 皆 (mina, “everybody, everyone”) + さん (-san, honorific suffix), used when addressing a group.


何方

The kanji are jukujikun (熟字訓); borrowed from Chinese 何 + 方.


何方

2007, 新時代日漢辭典 /新时代日汉辞典 (Xīn Shídài Rì-hàn Cídiǎn), 1st edition, 大新書局 /大新书局 (Dàxīn Shūjú), →ISBN:

あの方は何方様ですか


何方

何方 (canonical)
izuchi (romanization)
iduti (romanization)
いづち (hiragana historical)

/iduti/ → /izuti/. Compound of interrogative pronoun いづ (izu) and directional suffix ち (chi).

「「龍の頚の玉取りえずは、歸り來な」とのたまへば、いづちもいづちも、足の向きたらん方へいなむ。かゝるすき事をしたまふこと」と、そしりあへり。

(please add an English translation of this quotation)

indefinite interrogative directional pronoun; which direction, where


何方

ja-pos

何(いず)方(かた) • (izukata) ^(←いづかた (idukata)?)

何方 (canonical)
izukata (romanization)
idukata (romanization)
いづかた (hiragana historical)


天皇陛下

天(てん)皇(のう)陛(へい)下(か) • (Tennō Heika) ^(←てんわうへいか (Ten'wau Feika)?)

天皇陛下 (canonical)
Tennō Heika (romanization)
Ten'wau Feika (romanization)
てんわうへいか (hiragana historical)

Compound of 天皇 (tennō, “emperor”) + 陛下 (heika, “majesty”).

compound

天皇陛下がお召し上がりになる食事は、宮中料理人によって作られます。

Tennō Heika ga omeshiagari ni naru shokuji wa, kyūchū ryōrinin ni yotte tsukuraremasu.

The cuisine for His Imperial Majesty is prepared by the palace chef.

His Imperial Majesty
His Imperial Majesty

His Imperial Majesty (form of address to the Emperor of Japan)


彼氏

彼氏 (canonical)
彼氏 (canonical)
kareshi (romanization)

彼 (kare, “he; him; boyfriend”) + 氏 (shi, “he; him”)

com

a boyfriend (male partner in a romantic relationship)


己等

己等 (canonical)
己等 (canonical)
orera (romanization)


主上

ja-pos

主(しゅ)上(じょう) • (shujō) ^(←しゆじやう (syuzyau)?)

主上 (canonical)
shujō (romanization)
syuzyau (romanization)
しゆじやう (hiragana historical)

(archaic) Your Highness; His Majesty (the emperor or monarch)


幾人

(archaic) personal interrogative pro-adverb; how many people


幾人

(dated) personal interrogative pro-adverb; how many people


老子

From Middle Chinese 老子 (MC lawX tsiX), based on the literal meanings of the characters 老 (“old; an elder”) + 子 (diminutive suffix).
First attested in this use in a text from 1694.

(archaic) you (addressing an elderly person)


足下

Compound of 足 (ashi, “foot, feet”) + 元 (moto, “base; foundation; origin”). Note that the moto portion can be spelled variously as 元, 下, or 許.

compound

地震で足下が揺れた。

The ground underfoot shook from the earthquake.

1999 September 23, “泥(どろ)に潜(ひそ)み棲(す)むもの [The Thing That Hides in Mud]”, in Vol.5, Konami:

When the ground starts dissolving into mud, it means that that thing is emerging as we speak.

足下がドロドロと溶けだしたら、こいつが現れる前兆だ。

Ashimoto ga dorodoro to tokedashitara, koitsu ga arawareru zenchō da.

during the rice harvest, any grain that falls at one's feet


足下

Compound of 足 (a, “foot, feet”, older combining form of modern ashi) + 元 (moto, “base; foundation; origin”).

足下正し

to be of proper breeding, to have a solid pedigree

千里の行も足下に始まる

a journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step


足下

From Middle Chinese 足下 (tsjowk hæ^X, literally “foot + down, beneath”). Compare modern Cantonese reading zuk¹ haa⁶.


きむぢ

きむぢ (canonical)
きむじ (canonical)
kimuji (romanization)
kimudi (romanization)
きむぢ (hiragana historical)
きんぢ (alternative)

「いかに、美しき、君の御ざれ心なり。きむぢは、おなじ年なれど、いふかひなく、はかなかめるかし」

…もとめさせ給ひしに、なにがしぬしの蔵人にていますかりし時うけたまはりて、「わかき物どもは、えみしらじ。きむぢもとめよ」とのたまひしかば…

c. late 11th-early 12th century Ōkagami (book 6)

(archaic) second person personal pronoun: you


わぬ

宇倍兒奈波 和奴尓故布奈毛 多刀都久能 努賀奈敝由家婆 故布思可流奈母 或本歌末句曰 奴我奈敝由家杼 和奴賀由乃敝波

於保伎美乃 美許等加志古美 伊弖久礼婆 和努等里都伎弖 伊比之古奈波毛

我: (archaic) first person personal pronoun; I, me, oneself


わろ

/waro₂/ → /waro/. Likely a compound of 我 (wa) and suffix ろ (ro).

和呂多比波 多比等於米保等 已比尓志弖 古米知夜須良牟 和加美可奈志母


なむぢ

(archaic, obsolete) 汝, 爾: second-person personal pronoun: you, thou


たれ

誰: (archaic) interrogative personal pronoun; who


くそ

From the suffix くそ (-kuso) above. With the omission of the name, this becomes a general second person personal pronoun.

circa 959-965, Heichū Monogatari, chapter 17:
かゝりけるに、くそたち、來けり。「わがもとに來るなめり」と、この男は、見立てりけるに [...]

「いで、有るまじきコといふくソたちかな。」

970–999, Utsubo Monogatari, page Fujiwara no Kimi:

「おもしろき事の給フくそたちかな。ただかうなり、この事は。京くそたちのし給はんことは[...]」

late 900s, Ochikubo Monogatari, volume 4:
たゞひそみにひそみ給ひて、「何事もくそも人も、此殿おはせん限りは、えやすくすまじかめり。[...]」

「いで。その琴、彈き給へ。横笛は、月には、いと、をかしき物ぞかし。いづら。くそたち。琴、取りて參れ」

(archaic, possibly obsolete) second person personal pronoun: you


お前

お前 (canonical)
お前 (canonical)
omē (romanization)
ome (romanization)

/omae/ → /omeː/
Corruption of お前(まえ) (omae). First attested in 1777.

(dialectal) you (standard second-person pronoun)


貴方達

貴方達 (canonical)
anatatachi (romanization)


私共

私共 (canonical)
watakushidomo (romanization)


私共

私共 (canonical)
watashidomo (romanization)


身共

I (personal pronoun), formerly addressing to equal or inferior, archaic, often with humorous intent


そち

其方: that way; that person (close to the speaker); there


あたい

2008, “⑨destiny 〜 ずっとチルノのターン”, in bit (lyrics), Rebirth, performed by Silver Forest:

⑨～って言わないで アタイは最強だも～ん

Marukyũ tte iwanaide Atai wa saikyō da mo~n

Don't call me ⑨, because I'm the strongest

(Kagoshima, dialect) first-person pronoun: I, me


あぜ

From Eastern Old Japanese あぜ (aze), attested in the 東歌 (azuma uta, “Eastern songs”) of the Man'yōshū (759).

1775, Butsurui Shōko; text here
なぜと云事を薩摩にて・なじかいと云古き哥に　〽大和かい西はあじかを関東べい都こざんすいせをりやります　西土にてあじかをと云もなじかいといふにひとし総州及東奥にて・あぜといふ　江戸にて・なぜといふ京にて・なせにと清｛すみ｝ていふ案になぜとは胡｛なんぞ｝也とがめ　たる言葉也『万葉』にあぜそもこよひよしろきまさぬなと詠り古き詞なり
The dialectal forms of Japanese naze "why" in the dialects: in Satsuma, it is called najikai; an archaic song says "Yamato kai nishi wa ajika wo Kantō bei miyako zansuise[?] wori yarimasu"; in Saido it is called ajika, for which they're equivalent; in Sōshū and Tōoku, it is called aze; in Edo, it is called naze; in the capital, it's clearly called nase; as a note, naze is questioned for nanzo. Worth noting is the word exists in the Man'yōshū, reciting "aze somo koyofi yoshiro kimasanu".

(possibly obsolete) no way; expresses surprise and doubt


和人

alternative spelling of 我人 (wahito): second-person pronoun: you (with nuance of affection or contempt)


弊社

(humble) our modest company, this humble company


吾曹

吾曹 (canonical)
gosō (romanization)
gosau (romanization)
ごさう (hiragana historical)


いずれ

izure (romanization)
idure (romanization)
いづれ (hiragana historical)

/idure/ → /id͡zure/ → /izure/
Compound of interrogative pronoun いづ (izu) and suffix れ (re). Long form of いづ (izu).

何れにしても（せよ）


きそう

ja-noun

きそう • (kisō)


こっち

こっちが聞きたいぐらいだ。


汝達

Compound of 汝 (namu, “you”) + 達 (tachi, plural suffix).

compound

second person plural pronoun; you, ye, you guys


汝達

/namutati/ > /namtati/ > /namdati/. From earlier 汝達 (namutachi). See 汝達 (nandachi). The medial /m/ was written as /mu/ before the /n/ character evolved, but the effects are visible in the voiced /d/.

汝等 なむたち

1079, Konkōmyō Saishōōkyō Ongi, page 6 (back):

仁等 なむたち

1079, Konkōmyō Saishōōkyō Ongi, page 10 (front):


汝達

/namdati/ > /nandati/. From earlier 汝達 (namdachi).


わたす

1987 February 20 [1982 November 15], Motoka Murakami, “嵐(らん)子(こ)再(ふたた)びの巻(まき) [Reunite with Ranko]”, in 六(ム)三(サ)四(シ)の剣(けん) [Musashi’s Sword], 18th edition, volume 7 (fiction), Tokyo: Shogakukan, →ISBN, page 166:

わたす…轟 嵐子！

1987 February 20 [1982 November 15], Motoka Murakami, “５(ご)年(ねん)前(まえ)の誓(ちか)いの巻(まき) [An Oath Five Years Ago]”, in 六(ム)三(サ)四(シ)の剣(けん) [Musashi’s Sword], 18th edition, volume 7 (fiction), Tokyo: Shogakukan, →ISBN, page 170:

六三四、今すぐわたすと勝負しろ‼


自分自身

自分自身 (canonical)
jibunjishin (romanization)

[d͡ʑibɯ̟̃ɲ̟d͡ʑiɕĩɴ]


やつ

やつ (canonical)
ヤツ (canonical)
yatsu (romanization)
yatu (romanization)
やつ (hiragana historical)

ヤツを殺せ。


さま

From Old Japanese. Originally a compound of さ (sa, “that”, pronominal indicating a person, place, thing, or direction in the middle distance) + ま (ma, “likeness, way, similarity”, suffix indicating a quality).

one's social station, status, or quality


どっか

alternative form of どこか (dokoka, “somewhere”)


彼等

those (referring to things distant from the speaker)


ユー

The name of the Latin-script letter U/u.

エイチ · アイ · ジェー · ケー · エル · エム · エヌ · オー · ピー · キュー · アール · エス · ティー · ユー · ブイ


ユー

2004, Pokémon FireRed and LeafGreen, spoken by Lt. Surge:

「ユーは スペシャル！これは ミーの きもちね！」

“Yū wa supesharu! Kore wa mī no kimochi ne!”

You're a special kid! That's how I feel!


ワイ

ワイ (canonical)
わい (canonical)
wai (romanization)


幾年

ja-pos

幾年(いくねん) or 幾年(いくとせ) • (ikunen or ikutose)

幾年 (canonical)
幾年 (canonical)
ikunen (romanization)
ikutose (romanization)


筆者

筆(ひっ)者(しゃ) • (hissha) ^(←ひつしや (fitusya)?)

筆者 (canonical)
hissha (romanization)
fitusya (romanization)
ひつしや (hiragana historical)

I, the author, the writer (in self-reference)


何番目

what number (in an order), whatth, how manyth


うちら

(informal) we, us (used by girls since the 90s)


拙者

2006 July 9, Nobuhiro Watsuki, “第(だい)一幕(まく) 「剣(けん)心(しん)・緋(ひ)村(むら)抜(ばっ)刀(とう)斎(さい)」 [Act 1: “Kenshin: Himura the Battōsai”]”, in るろうに剣(けん)心(しん) —明(めい)治(じ)剣(けん)客(かく)浪(ろ)漫(まん)譚(たん)— [Rurōni Kenshin —Ballad of a Meiji Swordsroamer—], kanzenban edition, volume 1 (fiction), Tokyo: Shueisha, →ISBN, page 54:

Kenshin. “Himura Kenshin”. From now on you could call me that if you will.

剣心 「緋村剣心」 それが拙者の今の名前でござる

Kenshin “Himura Kenshin” Sore ga sessha no ima no namae de gozaru


あんた

あんた (canonical)
アンタ (canonical)
anta (romanization)

Contraction of あなた (anata, “you”, second-person singular pronoun), similar to あんちゃん (an-chan) from 兄ちゃん (ani-chan), もん (mon) from 物 (mono) or ん (n) from の (no).

2012 May 4, “残(ざん)虐(ぎゃく)さの勝(しょう)利(り) [Triumph of Cruelty]”, in アヴァシンの帰還 [Avacyn’s Return], Wizards of the Coast:

I’ve seen corpses prettier than you, beastmage.

あんたより可愛い死体はたくさん見てきたわよ、獣魔道士さん。

Anta yori kawaī shitai wa takusan mitekita wa yo, jūmadōshi-san.

2003 October 10, Quentin Tarantino, Kill Bill: Volume 1, spoken by young O-Ren Ishii (Ai Maeda), Miramax Films:

松本……あたしを見て……あたしの顔をよおく見て……あたしの目を見て……あたしの口を見て……見覚えないかい？……あんたが殺した誰かに……似てないかい！

Matsumoto…… Atashi o mite…… Atashi no kao o yōku mite…… Atashi no me o mite…… Atashi no kuchi o mite…… Mioboe nai kai?…… Anta ga koroshita dare ka ni…… nite nai kai!

Matsumoto…… Look at me…… Look closely at my face…… My eyes…… My mouth…… Don’t I look familiar?…… Like someone…… you murdered!

(informal or dialectal) alternative form of あなた (“you”) (second-person singular pronoun)


這裏

彼が武右衛門君に対して「そうさな」を繰り返しているのでも這裏の消息はよく分る。

Kare ga Buemon-kun ni taishite “sō sa na” o kurikaeshiteiru no de mo shari no shōsoku wa yoku wakaru.

1939, 加藤咄堂, transl., 碧巖録大講座, volume 1, 平凡社, translation of 碧巖錄 (in Chinese), page 364:

這裏に至つて、言も也た端、語も也た端、 […]

Shari ni itatte, gon mo mata tan, go mo mata tan […]


何曜日

何(なん)曜(よう)日(び) • (nan'yōbi) ^(←なんえうび (nan'eubi)?)

何曜日 (canonical)
nan'yōbi (romanization)
nan'eubi (romanization)
なんえうび (hiragana historical)

[nã̠ɰ̃jo̞ːbʲi]

Compound of 何 (nan, “which”) + 曜日 (yōbi, “day of the week”)

compound

今日は何曜日ですか？

days of the week: 曜日: 日曜日 · 月曜日 · 火曜日 · 水曜日 · 木曜日 · 金曜日 · 土曜日 [edit]


てめェー

ja-pos

てめェー • (temēe)

https://tcrf.net/Erika_to_Satoru_no_Yume_Bouken#Hidden_Messages
つぎに おおまち たつや てめェーだよ てめェー
tsugi ni Ōmachi Tatsuya temēe da yo temēe
Next, Tatsuya Ōmachi. Yes, you, you bastard.


てめぇー

てめぇー • (temēe)


拙僧

(humble) I, me (I, as a mere priest, a humble servant of Buddha)


皆さま

皆(みな) (mina, “all; every”) + 様(さま) (sama, politeness marker).


俺達

俺 (ore, “I; me”) + 達 (-tachi, plural marker)


不肖

ja-adj

不(ふ)肖(しょう) • (fushō) -na (adnominal 不(ふ)肖(しょう)な (fushō na), adverbial 不(ふ)肖(しょう)に (fushō ni))

不肖 (canonical)
fushō (romanization)
不肖な (adnominal)
不肖に (adverbial)


小職

[ɕo̞ːɕo̞kɯ̟]

(humble, stilted) I (used by government officials)


貴方方

貴方方 (canonical)
anatagata (romanization)


奴等

From 奴 (yatsu) + 等 (-ra, plural suffix).


あの人

あの (ano) + 人(ひと) (hito). Literally, "that person".

he, she, that person over there (third person singular)

he, she, that person both of us know (third person singular)

my husband, partner (of a female speaker)


朝臣

ja-noun

朝(あそ)臣(ん) or 朝臣(あそう) or 朝臣(あっそん) • (ason or asō or asson)

朝臣 (canonical)
朝臣 (canonical)
朝臣 (canonical)
ason (romanization)
asō (romanization)
asson (romanization)

⟨aso₂mi₁⟩ → */asəmʲɨ/ → */asomʉ/ → /asoɴ/
Shift from asomi below, Old Japanese aso₂mi₁.
The alternative readings are later-period shifts of the ason spelling.

(historical) a title given to powerful courtiers and members of the imperial family up to the fourth rank


こりゃ

駄目だこりゃ

(colloquial, slang) contraction of これは (kore wa): this (topic)


ミー

「ユーは スペシャル！これは ミーの きもちね！」

ja:日本語の一人称代名詞#ミー


彼奴

/ajat͡su/ → /ait͡su/
Shift from older ayatsu reading below. Appears from at least the 1500s.

あいつ本当嫌い。

「足(あし)腰(こし)をきたえてあ(﹅)い(﹅)つ(﹅)をぶん投(な)げてみたかったんだ」

1988 July 30 [1984 July 25], Fujiko F. Fujio, “ふたりぼっち [Altwo]”, in ポストの中の明日 [Post-Mid-Tomorrow] (藤子不二雄少年SF短編集; 2), 10th edition, volume 2 (fiction), Tokyo: Shogakukan, →ISBN, page 177:

“I trained my legs so that I could beat HIM in wrestling”

“Ashikoshi o kitaete AITSU o bunnagete mitakatta n da”

2002 March 9, Yumi Hotta with Obata, Takeshi, “第(だい)131(ひゃくさんじゅういち)局(きょく) 試(ため)される伊(い)角(すみ) [Game 131: Isumi’s Endeavor]”, in ヒカルの碁 [Hikaru’s Go], volume 16 (fiction), Tokyo: Shueisha, →ISBN, page 68:

楽平⁉アイツに負けた⁉

(informal) that guy, girl, or thing over there


彼奴

Compound of 彼 (a, “that, over there”, distal pronoun, indicating something far from both speaker and listener) + 奴 (yatsu, “guy, girl, thing”). Appears from the mid-1200s.

compound

(informal, dated) that guy, girl, or thing over there


彼奴

/kajat͡su/ → /kjat͡su/
Shift from older kayatsu below. Appears from the early 1200s.

2014, Pokémon Omega Ruby and Alpha Sapphire:

きゃつらめ…… 数千年前の 異常気象を 調べて どうするつもりだ……

Kyatsurame…… sū-sen-nen-mae no ijō kishō o shirabete dō suru tsumori da……

What on earth are they up to, investigating extreme weather that happened thousands of years ago?

(informal, men's speech) that guy, girl, or thing over there


彼奴

Compound of 彼 (ka, “that, over there”, distal pronoun, indicating something far from both speaker and listener; precursor to modern a) + 奴 (yatsu, “guy, girl, thing”). Appears from the late 900s.

(archaic, possibly obsolete) that guy, girl, or thing over there


彼奴

/kajat͡su/ → /kait͡su/
Shift from older kayatsu above. Appears during the Muromachi period (1336–1573), then falls out of use.

(obsolete) that guy, girl, or thing over there


あて

1914, 矢島吉造, 『日米の石油業』
左に一九一一年に於ける各国灯油消費量及一人当て消費量を表示す
Hidari ni senkyūhyakujūichi-nen ni okeru kakkoku tōyu shōhiryō oyobi hitori ate shōhiryō o hyōji su
Next we show the volume of lamp oil consumed in total and per capita in each country in 1911.

一九一一 せんきゅうひゃくじゅういち


此方人等

ja-pos

此(こ)方(ち)人(と)等(ら) or 此方人等(こっちとら) • (kochitora or kotchitora)

此方人等 (canonical)
此方人等 (canonical)
kochitora (romanization)
kotchitora (romanization)


御主

御 (o-, honorific prefix) + 主 (nushi, “master; you”)

pre

おぬしら

1987 March 20 [1987 February 20], Fujiko Fujio, “超兵器ガ壱號 [Super-Weapon GA Mk I]”, in カンビュセスの籤(くじ) [Cambyses’s Drawing] (藤子不二雄 ＳＦ全短編; 1), 2nd edition, volume 1 (fiction), Tokyo: Chuokoronsha, →ISBN, 第一章, page 76:

Yes, sir… I dreamed of being able to decipher ancient texts, such as Mayan logograms or Cretan…

は…… 古代文学の解読が夢でありましてマヤの絵文字やクレタの……

Ha…… kodai bungaku no kaidoku ga yume de arimashite Maya no emoji ya Kureta no……

は…… 古代文学の解読が夢でありましてマヤの絵文字やクレタの……

1997 July 15, Rumiko Takahashi, “第(だい)４(よん)話(わ) 半(はん)妖(よう) [Chapter 4: Han’yō]”, in 犬(いぬ)夜(や)叉(しゃ) [Inuyasha], volume 2 (fiction), Tokyo: Shogakukan, →ISBN, page 76:

Inuyasha, I’ve heard your father was a shapeshifting dog who lived in a stronghold in Saigoku…

犬夜叉、おぬしの父は、西国を根城にしていた化け犬であったと聞くが…

Inuyasha, onushi no chichi wa, Saigoku o nejiro ni shite ita bakeinu de atta to kiku ga…

2005 February 4, “恩(おん)義(ぎ)ある侍(さむらい) [Indebted Samurai]”, in 神(かみ)河(がわ)謀(む)叛(ほん) [Betrayal of Kamigawa], Wizards of the Coast:

Forgive me, Saburō. I could not save you. But your sword will keep on dancing in my hands.

許せ、三郎。おぬしを助けることはできなかった。だが、おぬしの剣はこの手の中で舞い続けるであろう。

Yuruse, Saburō. O-nushi o tasukeru koto wa dekinakatta. Da ga, onushi no ken wa kono te no naka de maitsuzukeru de arō.

(dated) you (to someone of equal or inferior status)


方々

ja-pos

方(かた)々(がた) • (katagata) ^(←かたがた (katagata)?)

方々 (canonical)
katagata (romanization)
かたがた (hiragana historical)

(polite) Second-person pronoun used mostly for multiple people, and sometimes a single person.


オメー

From お前 (omae, “you”) through assimilation. Compare てめー (temē, from 手前 (temae)), ねー (nē, from ない (nai)), ヤベー (yabē, from やばい (yabai)).

(informal) alternative form of お前 (omae, “you”)


あいつら

彼奴 (aitsu, “that guy”) + 等 (-ra, pluralizer)


あの人達

あの人達 (canonical)
anohitotachi (romanization)


あの方々

あの方々 (canonical)
anokatagata (romanization)


彼方此方

彼方此方 (canonical)
achirakochira (romanization)

Shortening of あちあり、こちあり (achi ari, kochi ari “some are over there, some are here”).
Compare Korean 여기저기 (yeogijeogi, literally “here + over there”).


彼方此方

ja-adj

彼(あ)方(ちら)此(こ)方(ちら) • (achirakochira) -na (adnominal 彼(あ)方(ちら)此(こ)方(ちら)な (achirakochira na), adverbial 彼(あ)方(ちら)此(こ)方(ちら)に (achirakochira ni))

彼方此方 (canonical)
achirakochira (romanization)
彼方此方な (adnominal)
彼方此方に (adverbial)

2010, Ono Saseo, Sutorippu shūgaku ryokō [Striptease field trip], Aozora Bunko, →OCLC:

No, more surprising than that may have been when A with persistence finally shucked her yukata, revealing a jumbled thin chemise

いやそれより驚いたのは、エイうるさいとついに浴衣をかなぐりすてたのか、あちらこちらにシミーズ一枚

Iya sore yori odoroita no wa, Ei urusai to tsuini yukata o kanaguri suteta no ka, achirakochira ni shimīzu ichimai


彼方此方

彼(あ)方(ち)此(こ)方(ち) • (achikochi) -na (adnominal 彼(あ)方(ち)此(こ)方(ち)な (achikochi na), adverbial 彼(あ)方(ち)此(こ)方(ち)に (achikochi ni))

彼方此方 (canonical)
achikochi (romanization)
彼方此方な (adnominal)
彼方此方に (adverbial)

Possibly from 彼路(あち) (achi, “that way”) + 此路(こち) (kochi, “this way”) or 彼地(あち) (achi, “that place”) + 此地(こち) (kochi, “this place”); compare archaic あち (achi, “over there”). Alternatively, perhaps from 遠近(おちこち) (ochikochi, “far and near”). Attested from the 13th century.

ja-compound

a. 1728, Ogiyu Sorai, Gen'en zatsuwa [Weary jottings], published 1772:

When parents should call in their children, it is perverse that the children call their parents

親が子を引合すべきに、子にて親を引合すはあちこちなり

Oya ga ko o hikiawasu beki ni, ko ni te oya o hikiawasu wa achikochi nari


彼方此方

彼方此方 (canonical)
atchikotchi (romanization)


何者

私は何者も恐れない。

何者にもなれない人

a person who will never amount to anything


爾曹

Ultimately Middle Chinese 爾曹 (nye^X dzaw).


爾曹

ja-pos

爾曹(なんじら) • (nanjira) ^(←なんぢら (nandira)?)

爾曹 (canonical)
nanjira (romanization)
nandira (romanization)
なんぢら (hiragana historical)

The kanji are borrowed from etymology 1 above, from Middle Chinese 爾曹 (nye^X dzaw).


愚生

(humble, men's speech) I, me (primarily used in letters)


何月

[nã̠ŋɡa̠t͡sɨ]


何日

[nã̠ɲ̟ːit͡ɕi]


漏れ

stem (or continuative) forms
連用形#Japanese

imperfective and stem (or continuative) forms of 漏れる (moreru) [ichidan]


漏れら

2007, “なぜか変換できない・LongVer.”, namakobcg [namakobcg] (lyrics)^(niconico VocaDB)performed by namakobcg [namakobcg] ft. 初音ミク:

tango no tōroku mendokusai
sore ga morera no sutātesu

単語の 登録 面倒臭い
それが 漏れらの スターテス

Registering words [into the IME user dictionary] is too much of a hassle
That's how it'll be for us

(Internet slang) alternative form of 俺ら (orera)


小官

(humble, government) first person singular pronoun: I, me


おみゃあ

おみゃあ or おみゃー • (omyā)

おみゃあ (canonical)
おみゃー (canonical)
omyā (romanization)

Eye dialect spelling of Nagoya dialect オメァー [ò̞mǽː], corrupted from お前 (omae, “you”).

2003, Kenji YOSHIMOTO, 眩 関ヶ原〈1〉天下人、再臨, 学習研究社 [Gakken Co., Ltd.], →ISBN:

I had pretended to be dead, and watched your actions. And then, you guys caused tremendous disturbance, so I can't contain my sadness.

死んだと偽っておみゃあらの動きを見ておった。そしたら、どえりゃあ騒ぎになりよって、余は嘆かわしゅうてならんだがや

Shinda to itsuwatte omyā-ra no ugoki o miteotta. Soshitara, doeryā sawagi ni nariyotte, yo wa nagekawashūte naran da gaya

eye dialect spelling of お前 (omae), representing Nagoya Japanese


そりゃあ

そりゃあ • (soryā)

Contraction of either それ (sore, “that”) or そいつ (soitsu, “he, she, that one”) with the topic marking particle は (wa).

そりゃあそうよ！

2014, Kazuhiko Tsuzuki, Osakana march, volume 1:

でもなあ そりゃあ悪いヤツには見えないケドさ

demo nā soryā warui yatsu ni wa mienai kedo sa

but y’know, he didn’t seem like such a bad guy


そりゃ

alternative form of そりゃあ (“certainly; just like that”)


かがし

Thought to be from 嗅がし (kagashi, “smelling, sniffing”), itself from 嗅が (kaga, the 未然形 (mizenkei, “irrealis form”) of verb 嗅ぐ (kagu), “to smell, sniff”) + し (-shi, adjectival suffix).

com

a foul scent placed in rice paddies to keep animals away


わらわ

warawa (romanization)
warafa (romanization)
わらは (hiragana historical)

[β̞a̠ɾa̠β̞a̠]

From 童(わらわ) (warawa, “child; young servant”). Compare 僕(ぼく) (boku, “I; me”, literally “manservant”). Attested from Late Middle Japanese (中世, c. 12th century).

ja-r

(Can we date this quote?), 尾田栄一郎, ONE PIECE [One Piece]:

そうよ わらわが 美しいから!!!

(Can we date this quote?), 艦隊これくしょん [Kantai Collection], spoken by 初春, scene: 母港・詳細:

ふむ。わらわをそうして慕うとよいぞ。

Fumu. Warawa o sōshite shitau to yoi zo.

2014, “狂宴絶美シャングリラ”, in Ceui (lyrics), パンドラ・コード〜希望篇〜, performed by Ceui:

わらわは エル・ドラドの王女

(modern fiction, women's speech) I; me (used by haughty women of the highest classes of society); usually accompanied by archaic speech styles


かの

Originally a compound of か (ka, “he, she, it”, third-person pronoun) + の (no, genitive particle).

compound

Refers to someone or something not previously mentioned in context, but known to both speaker and listener. Used when the referent cannot be explicitly named for some reason.

奈良茶は夜分、かののおゆるは朝時分

1694, Yashoku Jibun, Kōshoku Mankintan (Erotic Tonic), volume 3

Nara cha wa yabun, kano no oyuru wa asa jibun

かのとは誰ぢゃ、八つ橋か

1766, Chikamatsu Hanji, Honchō Nijūshi Kō (Twenty-four Filial Children of Japan), volume 4

So who is “you-know-who”, is it Yatsuhashi?


大上

大上 (canonical)
ōue (romanization)
ofoufe (romanization)
おほうへ (hiragana historical)

(honorific) your mother (of a noble person)


なにがし

山田某


いずく

izuku (romanization)
iduku (romanization)
いづく (hiragana historical)

⟨iduku⟩ → /id͡zuku/ → /izuku/
From Old Japanese いづく (iduku).

(archaic) indefinite interrogative pronoun: where, whence, whither, which

さびしさに宿を立ち出でて眺むればいづくも同じ秋の夕暮れ

sabishisa ni yado o tachiidete nagamureba izuku mo onaji aki no yūgure

I step in loneliness outside my dwelling; and when looking out, everywhere is but the same―autumn dusk.

(archaic, after a particle) indefinite demonstrative pronoun: anywhere, everywhere, somewhere


いどこ

/id͡zuko/ → /idoko/
Shift from いずこ (izuko) of the same meaning.
Continuing the analogy with locative pronouns ここ (koko) and そこ (soko), each having a -o in their initial morae, the medial -zu- changes to -do-.

おもしろき所に船を寄せて「ここやいどこ」と問ひければ「土佐の泊」と言ひけり。
Omoshiroki tokoro ni fune o yosete, “koko ya idoko,” to toikereba, “Tosa-no-tomari” to iikeri.
As the boat arrived at some fascinating place I asked, “Whither here?” He said, “Tosa Harbor”.
[Note: a manuscript close to the original uses いづこ (izuko) of the same meaning instead of idoko.]

c. 935, Ki no Tsurayuki, Tosa Nikki (Jōhei 5, twenty-ninth day of the first month)

(archaic, obsolete) indefinite interrogative pronoun: where, whence, whither, which

(archaic, obsolete, after a particle) indefinite demonstrative pronoun: anywhere, everywhere, somewhere


いずこ

izuko (romanization)
iduko (romanization)
いづこ (hiragana historical)

⟨iduku⟩ → /id͡zuku/ → /id͡zuko/ → /izuko/
Shift from Old Japanese-derived いずく (izuku) of the same meaning.
By analogy with locative pronouns ここ (koko) and そこ (soko), both of which end in -ko, the final -u of izuku became -o. Furthermore, the final the -ku and -ko of both aforementioned pronouns ultimately share cognancy with Old Japanese 処 (-ko₂), which would have been pronounced as /kə/ at that time.

おもしろき所に船を寄せて「こゝや何処」と問ひければ「土佐の泊」と言ひけり。
Omoshiroki tokoro ni fune o yosete, “koko ya izuko,” to toikereba, “Tosa-no-tomari” to iikeri.
As the boat arrived at some fascinating place I asked, “Whither here?” He said, “Tosa Harbor”.
[Note: some manuscripts use いどこ (idoko) of the same meaning instead of izuko.]

1998, “Yuki Shinshin [Snow Falling Heavily]”, Miyuki Ishimoto (lyrics), Satoshi Hinokibara (music), performed by Ayako Fuji:

Coming to my skin, love has been lost―my heart is piercing with loneliness!
Falling heavily, the snow is dancing, dancing―it's falling very heavily, where is the dawn?

肌を寄せた愛を失くし 胸に淋しさ突き刺さる
しんしんしん雪が舞う舞う しんしんしんしん夜明けはいづこ

hada o yoseta ai o nakushi mune ni sabishisa tsukisasaru
shin-shin-shin yuki ga maumau shinshin-shinshin yoake wa izuko

夏の夜はまだ宵ながらあけぬるを雲のいづこに月やどるらむ

natsu no yo wa mada yoi nagara akenuru o kumo no izuko ni tsuki yadoruran

The summer night dims as evening hours have not yet passed―somewhere in the clouds the moon takes her refuge.


こなた

Various sources suggest a possible contraction from この方 (ko-no-kata, literally “this way”).

(archaic) the person in question, he, she, him, her

(archaic) since (a time in the past), prior to (a time in the future)

(archaic) first-person pronoun: I, me, we, us


何ら

何ら (canonical)
izura (romanization)
idura (romanization)
いづら (hiragana historical)


当職

[to̞ːɕo̞kɯ̟]

唐澤貴洋
当職の弟を当職が殺したなどという当職のアイデンティティを否定する投稿が多数なされておりました。
Tōshoku no otōto o tōshoku ga koroshita nado to iu tōshoku no aidentiti o hitei suru tōkō ga tasū nasarete ori mashita.
There was posted many posts that deny own identity such as I have killed my brother.


何色

ja-pos

何(なん)色(しょく) • (nanshoku) ^(←なんしよく (nansyoku)?)

何色 (canonical)
nanshoku (romanization)
nansyoku (romanization)
なんしよく (hiragana historical)

[nã̠ɰ̃ɕo̞kɯ̟]

虹は何色ですか？

何色もの絵の具を混ぜた。


何色

何(なに)色(いろ) • (naniiro) ^(←なにいろ (naniiro)?)

何色 (canonical)
naniiro (romanization)
なにいろ (hiragana historical)

空は何色か


彼女たち

彼女たち (canonical)
kanojotachi (romanization)


そい

そいけん


我達

我達(わだぢ) or 我達(わーだぢ) or 我達(わんだい) • (wadaji or wādaji or wandai)

我達 (canonical)
我達 (canonical)
我達 (canonical)
wadaji (romanization)
wādaji (romanization)
wandai (romanization)


朕れ

alternative spelling of 我 (ware, “I”), formerly used by the emperor


あっし

Contraction of あたし (atashi).
First cited to a text from 1908.


御社

Compound of 御 (on-, honorific prefix) + 社 (sha, “company”).


当社

当社 (canonical)
tōsha (romanization)
tausya (romanization)
たうしや (hiragana historical)

Compound of 当 (tō-, “this”) + 社 (sha, “company”).


当行

ja-pos

当(とう)行(こう) • (tōkō)

Compound of 当 (tō-, “this”) + 行 (kō, clipping for 銀(ぎん)行(こう) (ginkō, “bank”)).


おし

Likely derived from same source as 私 (atashi < watashi); c.f. 私(あし) (ashi).

(dialect, Tochigi) first-person pronoun; I; me


おまいら

2025 January 4, “W.W.D ENDING [W.W.D ENDING]”, in 前山田健一 (lyrics), W.W.D ENDING [W.W.D ENDING], performed by でんぱ組.inc:

Watashi to omaira no jikaisaku ni go-kitai kudasai!

私とおまいらの次回作にご期待ください！

(2channel slang) alternative form of おまえら (omaera)


貴君

Likely originated as a lapsus linguae of 貴方(きほう) (kihō) with 君(きみ) (kimi) that eventually gained widespread acceptance.

貴君のご活躍を祈ります。

大辞林 w:ja:大辞林

大辞泉 w:ja:大辞泉

(men's speech, nonstandard) you (primarily used by men in letters to their equals or inferiors).

貴公

primarily used by males when addressing their male equals or inferiors

貴殿

primarily used by men in letters to their male equals or superiors

貴方

used to address someone of equal social footing


愚臣

(archaic, humble) A first-person pronoun used by a vassal who humbles himself to his master.


臣愚

臣愚竊に是を案ずるに

I, your humble vassal thinks out secretly that—


やつがれ

yatsugare (romanization)
yatugare (romanization)
やつがれ (hiragana historical)

やつ (yatsu) + 彼(かれ) (kare). The kare changes to gare as an instance of rendaku (連濁).

(humble, men's speech, somewhat dated) I, me


何回

ja-pos

何(なん)回(かい) • (nankai) ^(←なんくわい (nankwai)?)

何回 (canonical)
nankai (romanization)
nankwai (romanization)
なんくわい (hiragana historical)

何回試してみても同じだ。

No matter how many times I try, it's the same result.


わっし

(colloquial) first-person singular pronoun: I, me


わっち

[β̞a̠t̚t͡ɕi]

Shift from 私(わたし) (watashi). Used by early modern artisans and prostitutes.

(dialectal, Tottori) second-person plural pronoun


わちき

(archaic) I; me (used by prostitutes in the Edo period; sometimes used by tradesmen's daughters)


こんた

[kóꜜnàtà] → [kóꜜntà]
Shift from こなた (konata).
First cited to around 1780.
May be obsolete; not listed in some dictionaries, and marked in others as specific to the Edo period and the geographic region around Edo (modern-day Tokyo).

(archaic, possibly obsolete) second-person address: you

Daijirin
Daijisen
Edo
Edo period
Kyōsuke Kindaichi
Tokyo
ja:NHK出版
ja:NHK放送文化研究所
ja:松村明


俺氏

The masculine first-person pronoun 俺(おれ) (ore) humorously juxtaposed with the polite suffix 氏(し) (shi).


貴下

dear; Sir; you (a polite form of address in letter addresses or similar; used for a person of equal or lower position)


このほう

kono hō (romanization)
konofau (romanization)
このはう (hiragana historical)

(obsolete, men's speech, speaking to an inferior) I, me

men's speech; speaking to an inferior; men's speech; speaking to an inferior


此等

此等 (canonical)
korera (romanization)
是等 (alternative)


うな

Alternative form of 己 (ono, unu, second person pronoun).

(Tōhoku, Tochigi, Niigata, Nagano, Mie, Kyūshū) you (only used to subordinates or being rude)

(dialect) a second person pronoun:
(Kōzushima) you (formal)


弊廊

弊廊 (canonical)
heirō (romanization)
feirau (romanization)
へいらう (hiragana historical)

ギャラリー ギャラリー#Japanese

(humble, rare) our gallery (画廊 or ギャラリー)


弊館

弊(へい)館(かん) • (heikan) ^(←へいくわん (feikwan)?)

弊館 (canonical)
heikan (romanization)
feikwan (romanization)
へいくわん (hiragana historical)

(humble) our business / operation (used by businesses and groups operating a 館 – 旅館 (“inn”), 大使館 (“embassy”) etc.)


皆の衆

皆(みな)の衆(しゅう) • (mina no shū) ^(←みなのしゆう (minanosyuu)?)

皆の衆 (canonical)
mina no shū (romanization)
minanosyuu (romanization)
みなのしゆう (hiragana historical)


おまえさん

おまえさん • (omae-san) ^(←おまへさん (omafesan)?)

omae-san (romanization)
omafesan (romanization)
おまへさん (hiragana historical)

1810, Shikitei Sanba, Ukiyoburo [Bathhouse of the Floating World], volume 2:

御前さん、是をお浴び遊ばしてお上がりあすばせ

Omae-san, koko o oabi asubashite oagari asubase

おい、おまえさん！


おめえさん

omē-san (romanization)
omefesan (romanization)
おめへさん (hiragana historical)

[o̞me̞ːsã̠ɴ]

おまえさん おまえさん#Japanese

(dialect) alternative form of おまえさん (omae-san)


おめさん

ome-san (romanization)
omesan (romanization)
おめさん (hiragana historical)

おまえさん おまえさん#Japanese


ここいら

kokoira (romanization)
ここいら (hiragana historical)


こやつ

koyatsu (romanization)
koyatu (romanization)
こやつ (hiragana historical)


そやつ

soyatsu (romanization)
soyatu (romanization)
そやつ (hiragana historical)

(archaic, impolite) that (medial) person


あやつ

ayatsu (romanization)
ayatu (romanization)
あやつ (hiragana historical)

(archaic, impolite) that (distal) person


どやつ

doyatsu (romanization)
doyatu (romanization)
どやつ (hiragana historical)


まろ

maro (romanization)
まろ (hiragana historical)

Likely a compound of ま (ma) and suffix ろ (ro), similar to pronoun: わろ (waro) from 我 (wa) and ろ (ro).
A more likely hypothesis derives it from a meaning "chap, fellow".


那辺

1895, 泉鏡花, 愛と婚姻, 青空文庫:

妻なく、夫なく、一般の男女は皆たゞ男女なりと仮定せよ。愛に対する道徳の罪人は那辺にか出来らむ

Tsuma naku, otto naku, ippan no danjo wa mina tada danjo nari to katei seyo. Ai ni taisuru dōtoku no zainin wa nahen ni ka idekitaran

Suppose there were no wives, no husbands, and men and women at large were all merely men and women. Whereabouts would the transgressors of the morals of love appear?

1916, 河上肇, 貧乏物語, 青空文庫:

今日の社会が貧乏という大病に冒されつつあることを明らかにするが上編の主眼であったが、中編の目的はこの大病の根本原因の那辺にあるかを明らかにし、やがてこの物語全体の眼目にして下編の主題たるべき貧乏根治策に入るの階段たらしむるにある。

Konnichi no shakai ga binbō to iu taibyō ni okasaretsutsu aru koto o akiraka ni suru ga jōhen no shugan de atta ga, chūhen no mokuteki wa kono taibyō no konpon gen'in no nahen ni aru ka o akiraka ni shi, yagate kono monogatari zentai no ganmoku ni shite gehen no shudai taru beki binbō konjisaku ni hairu no kaidan tarashimuru ni aru.

The main purpose of the first section was to show that today's society is being afflicted by a grave disease called poverty. The purpose of the second section is to clarify where the root cause of this disease lies and to make that a step towards eventually going into the complete cure for poverty, which will be the topic of the third section and the main object of this whole composition.


あっちゃこっちゃ

ja-adj

あっちゃこっちゃ • (atchakotcha) -na (adnominal あっちゃこっちゃな (atchakotcha na), adverbial あっちゃこっちゃに (atchakotcha ni))

atchakotcha (romanization)
あっちゃこっちゃな (adnominal)
あっちゃこっちゃに (adverbial)

(dialect) alternative form of 彼方此方 (atchikotchi, “reversed, opposite”)


諸士

諸士 (canonical)
shoshi (romanization)
syosi (romanization)
しよし (hiragana historical)


この辺

ja-pos

この辺(へん) • (kono hen) ^(←このへん (konofen)?)

この辺 (canonical)
kono hen (romanization)
konofen (romanization)
このへん (hiragana historical)

Phrase comprising この (“this”) and 辺(へん) (hen, “area; amount, extent”).

用事があるのでこの辺で。

I have something else to do, so let's call it a day here.

to this end point; this approximate amount


何曜

何(なん)曜(よう) • (nan'yō) ^(←なんえう (nan'eu)?)

何曜 (canonical)
nan'yō (romanization)
nan'eu (romanization)
なんえう (hiragana historical)

(Can we date this quote?), 宮本百合子, 千世子, 青空文庫:

「それはそうと今日一体何曜？」
「今日？ どうして忘れたの？ 木曜ですよ！」

今日一体 きょういったい

“Sore wa sō to kyō ittai nan'yō?”
“Kyō? Dō shite wasureta no? Mokuyō desu yo!”

“By the way, what the heck day is it today?”
“Today? How did you forget? It’s Thursday!”


どれもこれも

一切合切

一切合切 いっさいがっさい


えず

ezu (romanization)
edu (romanization)
えづ (hiragana historical)


何ヶ月

何ヶ月 (canonical)
nankagetsu (romanization)

[nã̠ŋka̠ɡe̞t͡sɨ]

何(なん) (nan, “what”) + ヶ(か) (ka, a simplified form of 箇(か) (ka), the counter for months) + 月(げつ) (getsu, “month”)


何個

何 (nan, “how many”) + 個 (ko, “thing”, general counter used for any object)


こいつら

こいつ (koitsu, “this guy”) + 等 (-ra, pluralizer)


そいつら

そいつ (soitsu, “that guy”) + 等 (-ra, pluralizer)


おまいさん

おまえさん おまえさん#Japanese


何年生

何年生 (canonical)
nannensei (romanization)

[nã̠nːẽ̞ɰ̃se̞ː]


お前たち

お前たち (canonical)
omaetachi (romanization)

お前 (omae, “you”) + 達 (-tachi, pluralizer)

(informal, men's speech; or dialect) you (plural)


あんたら

あんたら (canonical)
アンタら (canonical)
antara (romanization)


あんたたち

あんたたち (canonical)
アンタたち (canonical)
antatachi (romanization)

あんた (anta, “you”) + 達 (-tachi, pluralizer)


その方

(formal) he, she, that person [close to the speaker]


その方達

その方達 (canonical)
sonokatatachi (romanization)


この方達

この方達 (canonical)
konokatatachi (romanization)


あの方達

あの方達 (canonical)
anokatatachi (romanization)

(formal) they (those people, away from speaker)


御身

御身 (canonical)
onmi (romanization)
おんみ (hiragana historical)

御(おん) (on-, honorific prefix) + 身(み) (mi, “body; self”)


御身

A later pronunciation of 御身(おんみ) (onmi) above.