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【No. 1850】Kaeru and Kawazu (「かえる」と「かわず」 - "Frog")

May 20, 2021 20:02
Keru and Kawazu

蛙, which means "frog," can be read in two ways: kaeru (かえる) and kawazu (かわず/かわづ).

The most common reading is the former, kaeru.

The latter reading kawazu is rarely used in daily life. You can only find it in waka (traditional Japanese poems of thirty-one syllables) or proverbs.

To the Japanese sense, kaeru sounds cute, whereas kawazu sounds formal or elegant.

In fact, in the past, kaeru was used as a spoken language, while kawazu was used as gago/miyabi-kotoba (雅語 - meaning "sophisticated word").
「かえる」と「かわず」

"Frog" を意味する「蛙」は、「かえる」と「かわず/かわづ」の二つの読み方があります。

日常的に使われる読み方は「かえる」です。

「かわず」は日常的にはほとんど用いられず、和歌やことわざの中でよく使われます。

「かえる」はかわいらしい響きであるのに対し、「かわず」は正式または上品な響きを持ちます。

実際、かつては「かえる」は口語、「かわず」は雅語として使われていたようです。

Corrections (1)

No. 1 errg
  • Kaeru and Kawazu (「かえる」と「かわず」 - "Frog")
  • This sentence is perfect! No correction needed!
  • Keru and Kawazu
  • Kaeru and Kawazu

    just a typo

  • 蛙, which means "frog," can be read in two ways: 'kaeru' (かえる) and 'kawazu' (かわず/かわづ).
  • This sentence is perfect! No correction needed!
  • The most common reading is the former, 'kaeru'.
  • This sentence is perfect! No correction needed!
  • The latter reading 'kawazu' is rarely used in daily life.
  • This sentence is perfect! No correction needed!
  • You can only find it in waka (traditional Japanese poems of thirty-one syllables) or proverbs.
  • This sentence is perfect! No correction needed!
  • To the Japanese sense, 'kaeru' sounds cute, whereas 'kawazu' sounds formal or elegant.
  • This sentence is perfect! No correction needed!
  • In fact, in the past, 'kaeru' was used as a spoken language, while 'kawazu' was used as 'gago/miyabi-kotoba' (雅語 - meaning "sophisticated word").
  • In fact, in the past, 'kaeru' was used in spoken language, while 'kawazu' was used as 'gago/miyabi-kotoba' (雅語 - meaning "sophisticated word").

That's interesting!

Toru
Thank you for the correction! (^^)

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