See also:
U+85AC, 薬
CJK UNIFIED IDEOGRAPH-85AC

[U+85AB]
CJK Unified Ideographs
[U+85AD]

Translingual edit

Traditional
Shinjitai
Simplified

Han character edit

(Kangxi radical 140, +13, 16 strokes, cangjie input 廿戈人木 (TIOD), composition )

References edit

  • Kangxi Dictionary: not present, would follow page 1062, character 44
  • Dai Kanwa Jiten: character 32188
  • Hanyu Da Zidian (first edition): not present, would follow volume 5, page 3303, character 5
  • Unihan data for U+85AC

Chinese edit

For pronunciation and definitions of – see (“medicine; drug; pharmaceutical; substance used for a particular purpose; etc.”).
(This character is a variant form of ).

Japanese edit

Shinjitai

Kyūjitai

Kanji edit

(grade 3 “Kyōiku” kanjishinjitai kanji, kyūjitai form )

  1. medicine, drug
  2. chemical

Readings edit

Compounds edit

Etymology 1 edit

Kanji in this term
くす
Grade: 3
kun’yomi
Alternative spelling
(kyūjitai)

From Old Japanese. Cognate with the kusu root of adjective 奇し (kusushi, mystical),[1] from the way that drugs and medicines would have mystical effects.

Pronunciation edit

Affix edit

(くす) (kusu

  1. a medicine or drug
Usage notes edit

Only used in compounds.

Derived terms edit

Etymology 2 edit

Kanji in this term
くすり
Grade: 3
kun’yomi
Alternative spelling
(kyūjitai)

From Proto-Japonic *kusori. Derivation from kusu above. Appears to be the 連用形 (ren'yōkei, continuative or noun form) of unattested verb kusuru “to have a mystical effect”.

Pronunciation edit

Noun edit

(くすり) (kusuri

  1. a substance with mystical properties, especially one that has an effect on the body, health, or lifespan
  2. a medicine or drug, a pharmaceutical
  3. a chemical, generally toxic and used for its effect on living organisms, such as insecticide or herbicide
  4. a substance that has a beneficial effect in improving or maintaining one's health
  5. (figurative) something that has a beneficial effect in correcting one's mistakes
  6. Short for 釉薬 (uwagusuri): a glaze or enamel applied to ceramics
  7. gunpowder (from the “mystical substance” sense, and the second character in the word 火薬 (kayaku, gunpowder))
  8. (figurative) a small bribe
Usage notes edit

The medicine sense is probably the most common in modern Japanese.

Derived terms edit

Etymology 3 edit

Kanji in this term
やく
Grade: 3
on’yomi
Alternative spelling
(kyūjitai)

From Middle Chinese (MC yak). Compare modern Cantonese (joek6).

Pronunciation edit

Noun edit

(やく) (yaku

  1. (slang) a medicine or drug, especially a narcotic or other recreational drug
Usage notes edit

The slang meaning is generally limited to when the term yaku is used as a standalone noun. In compounds, yaku refers more generally to pharmaceuticals, or sometimes chemicals.

Derived terms edit

References edit

  1. ^ 1988, 国語大辞典(新装版) (Kokugo Dai Jiten, Revised Edition) (in Japanese), Tōkyō: Shogakukan
  2. 2.0 2.1 Matsumura, Akira, editor (2006) 大辞林 [Daijirin] (in Japanese), Third edition, Tōkyō: Sanseidō, →ISBN
  3. 3.0 3.1 NHK Broadcasting Culture Research Institute, editor (1998) NHK日本語発音アクセント辞典 [NHK Japanese Pronunciation Accent Dictionary] (in Japanese), Tōkyō: NHK Publishing, →ISBN