Yakimochi (Jealousy)
Today I would like to talk about the Japanese word “yakimochi.”
やきもち
“Yaki” means “roasted,” “mochi” means “rice cake,” so “yakimochi” can literally mean “roasted rice cake,” but it often used to mean “jealousy” or “envy.”
今日は「やきもち」という言葉を紹介します。
In such a case, it is often used something like “yakimochi wo yaku,” literally meaning “to roast a rice cake,” and it refers “to feel jealous.”
「やきもち」は文字通り「焼いた餅」を意味することもありますが、「嫉妬」や「妬み」を意味することもあります。
In Japanese, getting jealous is translated into “shitto suru,” and is also said as “yaku.”
このとき、よく「やきもちをやく」のように利用されます。
Here, the readings of “yaku” to mean “to get jealous” and “yaku” to mean “to roast” are the same.
日本語では、「嫉妬する」ことを「妬く（やく）」とも言い、これは「焼く」と同音です。
It is said that “mochi” (rice cake) was attached to this verb “yaki” as a joke, the word “yakimochi,” meaning “jealousy” was born.
この「妬く」に洒落で「餅」が添えられ、「嫉妬」を意味する「やきもち」という言葉ができたとされています。
