虫眼鏡

Japanese

虫眼鏡 (mushi megane): a magnifying glass.

虫眼鏡 (mushi megane): a microscope.

虫眼鏡 (mushi megane): the jo no kuchi or lowest rank in professional sumo is listed on the 番付 (banzuke, “sumo rankings list”) in the smallest font, seen here in rows 2, 3, and 4.

Kanji in this term
虫	眼	鏡
むし Grade: 1	め Grade: 5	かね > がね Grade: 4
irregular

Alternative spelling
蟲眼鏡 (kyūjitai)

Etymology

Compound of 虫 (mushi, “bug, insect”) +‎ 眼鏡 (megane, “eyeglass[es]”).

Pronunciation

• (Tokyo) むしめ​がね [mùshíméꜜgànè] (Nakadaka – [3])
• IPA^(key): [mɯ̟ᵝɕime̞ɡa̠ne̞]

Noun

虫(むし)眼(め)鏡(がね) • (mushi megane) 

1. a magnifying glass
2. a microscope
3. (slang, sumo) the lowest rank in major-league sumo, so called because the 力士 (rikishi, “sumo wrestler”) names are displayed at the bottom of the 番付 (banzuke, “sumo rankings list or program”) in a small font, requiring the use of a magnifying glass to read easily

Synonyms

• (magnifying glass): 拡(かく)大(だい)鏡(きょう) (kakudaikyō)
• (microscope): 顕(けん)微(び)鏡(きょう) (kenbikyō)
• (sumo rank): 序(じょ)の口(くち) (jo no kuchi)

See also

• 眼(め)鏡(がね) (megane): glasses
• 望(ぼう)遠(えん)鏡(きょう) (bōenkyō): telescope
• 双(そう)眼(がん)鏡(きょう) (sōgankyō): binoculars
• 顕(けん)微(び)鏡(きょう) (kenbikyō): microscope
• 潜(せん)望(ぼう)鏡(きょう) (senbōkyō): periscope
• 万(まん)華(げ)鏡(きょう) (mangekyō): kaleidoscope
• オペラグラス (operagurasu): opera glasses