女

See also 又, 夂, 夊, 夕, 支, 攴, 攵, 文, 歹, 歺, ヌ, ㄡ, タ, and ㄆ

Translingual

Stroke order

Etymology

Pictogram (象形): a woman with breasts kneeling or standing. In modern form turned on left side: enclosed area is remnant of left breast (character's left, depicted woman's right), while right breast has disappeared. Graphically cognate to 母 (“mother”), which has developed similarly, but also includes dots for nipples and has retained both breasts.

Oracle bone script	Bronze inscriptions	Large seal script	Small seal script

Han character

女 (radical 38 女+0, 3 strokes, cangjie input 女 (V), four-corner 4040₀)

1. female
2. rad. 38

Antonyms

• 男

Descendants

• め
• メ

References

• KangXi: page 254, character 22
• Dai Kanwa Jiten: character 6036
• Dae Jaweon: page 516, character 19
• Hanyu Da Zidian: volume 2, page 1023, character 23
• Unihan data for U+5973

---

Cantonese

Hanzi

女 (jyutping jyu5, neoi5, neoi6, Yale neui5)

---

Hakka

Hanzi

女 (POJ ńg, nyi2, Guangdong ngi³, ng³, ngiu³ [Meixian], Hagfa Pinyim ng3)

References

• CCDICT (Chineselanguage.org)
• Academia Sinica - Hakka-English Dictionary
• Lau, Chun-fat. Hakka Pinyin Dictionary (Chinese). Hong Kong: The Chinese University Press, 1997 (Chinese IME supplement) ISBN 962-201-750-9.

---

Japanese

Kanji

女 (grade 1 “Kyōiku” kanji)

Readings

• Go'on: にょ (nyo)
• Kan'on: じょ (jo)
• Kanyō'on: にょう (nyō)
• Kun: おんな (onna), め (me), obsolete おみな (omina), archaic おうな (ōna), archaic おな (ona), archaic おなあ (onā), archaic おなご (onago)
• Nanori: おな (ona), た (ta), つき (tsuki), な (na)

Compounds

Compounds

彼女 (かのじょ, kanojo): lit. "she, her etc" 女郎花 (おみなえし, ominaeshi) patrinia 女親 (おんなおや, onnaoya) female parent 女形 (おんながた, onnagata) male actor in female role of Kabuki 女心 (おんなごころ, onnagokoro) woman's mind 女手 (おんなで, onnade) female worker 女友達 (おんなともだち, onnatomodachi) girlfriend, female friend 孝女 (こうじょ, koujo) filial daughter 工女 (こうじょ, koujo) female worker 皇女 (こうじょ, koujo) imperial princess 女医 (じょい, joi) doctoress 女王 (じょうおう, jouou) queen 女系 (じょけい, jokei) woman-succession 女傑 (じょけつ, joketsu) brave woman 女権 (じょけん, joken) woman rights 女史 (じょし, joshi) Ms. 女中 (じょちゅう, jochuu) maid 処女 (しょじょ, shojo) virgin, maiden

女子 (じょし, joshi) girl 女児 (じょじ, joji) female infant 女性 (じょせい, josei) woman 女声 (じょせい, josei) female voice 女婿 (じょせい, josei) son-in-law 女帝 (じょてい, jotei) empress 女優 (じょゆう, joyuu) actress 女流 (じょりゅう, joryuu) female 女郎 (じょろう, jorou) prostitute 女房 (にょうぼう, nyoubou) wife 女官 (にょかん, nyokan) court lady 女将 (にょしょう, nyoshou) mistress, hostess 女人 (にょにん, nyonin) woman 女神 (めがみ, megami) goddess 美女 (びじょ, bijo) beauty, belle 雪女 (ゆきおんな, yuki onna): a snow woman 痴女 (ちじょ, chijo) slut, a female libertine

Etymology 1

From Old Japanese. /womi₁na/ > /womina/ > /omina/. The initial /wo/ expressed "small, youth" and contrasted with /o/ "grown, old" (as in 嫗 (omina) "old woman"). The medial /mi/ is cognate with 女 (me, “female, woman”).

Pronunciation

• Kun'yomi
• IPA: [o̞.mi.nä]

Noun

女 (hiragana おみな, romaji omina, historical hiragana をみな)

1. (archaic) a young woman
2. (archaic) a woman

Etymology 2

From earlier /womina/: /womina/ > /woɴna/ > /oɴna/.

Pronunciation

• Kun'yomi
• IPA: /o.ɴ.naꜜ/, [õ̞˨.ɴ˦.nä˦]

Noun

女 (hiragana おんな, romaji onna, historical hiragana をんな)

1. a woman

Usage notes

This has superseded omina, and is now one of the standard Japanese words for woman.

Etymology 3

From Old Japanese. /me₁/ > /me/

Pronunciation

• Kun'yomi
• IPA: [me̞]

Noun

女 (hiragana め, romaji me)

1. female
2. woman
3. wife
   • c. 890: Taketori Monogatari (page 3)

     女（め）の女にあづけてやしなはす。

Usage notes

Used more in compounds than on its own.

Derived terms

Derived terms

端女 (はしため, hashitame): a servant girl 姫 (ひめ, hime): a princess 妹 (いも, imo): (archaic) a masculine word for referring to one's sisters or wife 郎女 (いらつめ, iratsume): (archaic) an ancient term of endearment for referring to a woman or girl 雌花 (めばな, mebana): a female flower, having only a pistil and no stamens 雌豚 (めぶた, mebuta): a sow, a female pig 女滝, 雌滝 (めだき, medaki): in a waterfall with two cataracts, the smaller of the two 女竹, 雌竹 (めだき, medake): a type of low-growing bamboo, Pleioblastus Simonii 雌鳥, 雌鶏 (めどり, medori; めんどり, mendori): a hen; a female bird 雌刈萱 (めがるかや, megarukaya): a type of grass, Themada japonica 女神 (めがみ, megami): a goddess 女木, 雌木 (めぎ, megi): a female tree; the lower or receiving piece of wood in a join 女君 (めぎみ, megimi): polite term for another person's wife or daughter 雌蛭木 (めひるぎ, mehirugi): a type of mangrove, Kandelia obovata 女日芝, 雌日芝 (めひしば, mehishiba): crabgrass, Digitaria ciliaris 姪 (めい, mei): a niece 牝鹿 (めか, meka): a doe, a female deer 女子 (めこ, meko): woman and child; a girl 婚く (めまく, memaku): to get married 女々しい (めめしい, memeshii): unmanly; effeminate; sissy 女波 (めなみ, menami): the smaller waves 雌螺子, 雌捻子 (めねじ, meneji): a nut or other item threaded to receive a screw 乳母, 傅 (めのと, menoto): a nanny; a wetnurse; a foster parent 女の子 (めのこ, me no ko): a girl; a woman 夫婦 (めおと, meoto): man and wife, a married couple 女親 (めおや, meoya): (archaic) a mother 雌蕊, 雌蘂, 雌蕋 (めしべ, meshibe): a pistil 雌鹿, 牝鹿 (めしか, meshika; めじか, mejika): a doe, a female deer 雌, 牝 (めす, mesu): a female animal 娶る (めとる, metoru): to get married 牝馬 (めうま, meuma; めま, mema): a mare, a female horse 牝牛, 雌牛 (めうし, meushi): a cow, female cattle 乙女 (おとめ, otome): a girl, a virgin 嫗 (おみな, omina): (archaic) an old woman 女 (おんな, onna): a woman 母 (おも, omo): (obsolete) a mother 姑 (しゅうとめ, shūtome): a mother-in-law 浮かれ女, 浮女 (うかれめ, ukareme): a female entertainer or prostitute 嫁 (よめ, yome): a bride

References

• 1997 May 21, Hideaki Horiuchi; Ken Akiyama, Taketori Monogatari , Ise Monogatari, Tōkyō: Iwanami Shoten, ISBN 4-00-240017-4:

See also

• mesu
• onna
• くノ一 (kunoichi)

---

Korean

Hanja

女
Eumhun:

• Sound (hangeul): 녀(여) (revised: nyeo(yeo), McCune-Reischauer: nyŏ(yŏ), Yale: nye(ⁿye))

• Name (hangeul): 계집 (revised: gyejip, McCune-Reischauer: kyejip, Yale: kyeycip)

1. (계집 녀, gyejip-): (vulgar) female, woman, wife.

---

Mandarin

Pronunciation

• audio

  (file)

Hanzi

女 (pinyin nǚ (nü3), rǔ (ru3), Wade-Giles nü³)

Compounds

女伴 女扮男装 女宾 女傧相 女兵 女厕 女车 女大不中留 女大十八变 (女大十八變) 女低音 女儿 女儿酒 女儿墙 女方

女高音 女工 女红 女孩儿 女护士 女皇 女家 女监 女将 女眷 女郎 女里女气 女流 女朋友 girlfriend

女仆 女墙 女强人 女权 女权主义 女人 女人心，海底针 (女人心，海底針) 女色 女神 女生 女声 女士 女娲

女王 女巫 女性 女婿 女佣 女中音 女主角 女主人 女装 女子 女子无才便是德 (女子無才便是德) 少女

---

Middle Chinese

Han character

女 (* niǔ, * njiǔ)

---

Min Nan

Hanzi

女 (POJ lú (lu²), lí (li²))

---

Vietnamese

Han character

女 (nữ, nữa, lỡ, nhỡ, nớ, nợ, nỡ, nự)