音訓 (ON & KUN Readings)
In most languages which utilize Chinese characters – known as Kanji in the context of Japanese – each character tends to only have one reading per meaning. Due to both isolation, geopolitical factors, and the association of native words onto Kanji, most Kanji have several readings and meanings (or nuancing) associated with them.
While Kanji readings can be categorized as either being an ON reading (音読み) or a KUN reading (訓読み), the confusion does not end there. The purpose of this lesson is to delve deeper into this ON/KUN (音訓) puzzle, so that you may discover ways to help identify the readings of new words you encounter more efficiently.
※IPA notation is implemented in this lesson.
Orthography Note: All ON readings will be shown in カタカナ and all KUN readings will be shown in ひらがな.
Kanji & Meaning
Kanji are known as logograms because of how each character represents a morpheme (unit of meaning). Although it is true that many Kanji are ideographic in origin, it is more efficient to recognize each Kanji as being associated with words which have sound. This meaning-sound correspondence is crucial, as most Kanji possess components (radicals) for either purpose.
In other words, the shape of a Kanji alone is not indicative of its meaning or sound.
For example, the Kanji 水 meaning “water” did derive from a pictogram, but how it appears today is not intuitively indicative of this meaning. First, a Mandarin Chinese speaker must recognize this as meaning “water,” and since their word for water is “shuǐ,” that then constitutes the Kanji’s sound.
In Japanese, 水 maintained its meaning of “water” as well as its Chinese sound in the form of the ON reading スイ, while the Japanese word for “water” became attributed to it as its KUN reading みず.
音読み
The history of ON readings is complicated, as they were assimilated into Japanese over multiple waves spanning several centuries from multiple varieties and stages of Chinese, with no particular wave ever completely supplanting previous waves. This has produced four types of ON readings: Wu, Han, Tang, and Conventional ON readings.
As Japanese has undergone many sound changes over the centuries too, all ON readings are portrayed with their Modern Japanese pronunciations.
The Sounds of Wu 呉音
The first wave of readings are called 呉音1. These readings are the oldest and come from the Wu Dynasty. They entered Japanese during the 5th to 6th centuries. Many Buddhist and Ritsuryou System (律令)2 terms have these readings as well as many for basic vocabulary.
| 世間 | セケン | Society | 末期 | マツゴ | Hour of death |
| 男女 | ナンニョ | Men and women | 正体 | ショウタイ | True identity |
| 経文 | キョウモン | Sutra | 下人 | ゲニン | Menial |
| 極楽 | ゴクラク | Paradise | 正直 | ショウジキ | Honest |
| 成就 | ジョウジュ | Success | 会釈 | エシャク | Nod; salutation |
| 工夫 | クフウ | Scheme | 祇園 | ギオン | Gion |
| 白衣 | ビャクエ | White robe | 金色 | コンジキ | Gold color |
| 荼毘 | ダビ | Cremation | 供米 | クマイ | Rice offering |
There were many alterations to the actual pronunciations used at the time in Wu China. For instance, final /–t/ became [–chi] upon entering Japanese – ex. 日 = ニチ. /–ng/, which did not exist as phoneme in Japanese at the time, was dealt with rather haphazardly, sometimes being replaced with a high vowel like /i/ or /u/, or at other times, being dropped altogether. In rare instances, this final /ng/ was preserved as a medial /g/ – ex. 双六 = スゴロク.
The Sounds of Han 漢音
The most influential ON readings in Japanese are known as 漢音, which are believed to have entered the language during the 7th and 8th centuries, which correspond to the Sui and Tang Dynasties. They were propagated into Japanese society via emissaries that traveled between China and Japan at the time.
As they were disseminating among the educated class, efforts were made by the elites to eradicate the older 呉音. Although largely successful, words to this day still exhibit both, as well as ON readings which were introduced afterwards.
Several systematic sound changes can be seen when comparing 呉音 and 漢音, which reflect sound changes that were occurring at the time in Chinese.
| 漢字 | 呉音 | 漢音 |
| 馬 | マ | バ |
| 日 | ニチ | ジツ |
| 美 | ミ | ビ |
| 微 | ミ | ビ |
| 泥 | ネイ | デイ |
| 定 | ジョウ | テイ |
| 盛 | ジョウ | セイ |
| 禅 | ゼン | セン |
| 現 | ゲン | ケン |
| 従 | ジュ（ウ） | ショウ |
| 盤 | バン | ハン |
| 勤 | ゴン | キン |
| 混 | ゴン | コン |
| 会 | エ | カイ |
| 黄 | オウ | コウ |
| 神 | ジン | シン |
| 令 | リョウ | レイ |
| 明 | ミョウ | メイ |
| 礼 | ライ | レイ |
| 青 | ショウ | セイ |
| 平 | ビョウ | ヘイ |
Despite Modern Japanese Kana orthography obscuring some of the connections that can be made between these two sets of readings, we can still posit several sound change rules based off what we still have in Modern Japanese:
①呉音 with initial nasal consonants underwent de-nasalization, prompting a shift in articulation to the closest voiced approximate. These sound were then further simplified to fit Japanese phonology. Below are the initial consonants (声母) for four Kanji shown above as they progressed from 呉音 > 漢音 > how those 漢音 became realized in Japanese.
馬: [m] > [mb] > [b]
泥: [n] > [nd] > [d]
微: [ɱ] > [ɱv] > [b]
日: [ȵ] > [ȵʑ] > [ʑ]
②呉音 whose initial consonant was a voiced sound became unvoiced, minus nasal consonant initials whose final consonant was [ŋ] in Chinese. As Japanese does not allow mora-final [ŋ], it would be realized as a nasalized high vowel, either /i/ or /u/.
混: [g] > [k]
盛: [ʑ] > [s]
定: [ʑ] > [t]
③呉音 whose initial consonant were interpreted as [w] upon entering Japanese changed to [kw]. Few such 漢音 have made it into Modern Japanese, but for those that do, [kw] has since turned into [k].
会: [w] > [kwa] > [k]
The 呉音 spelling エ is the modern kana rendition. Traditionally, it is ヱ, showing the retention of [w] at the time. Up until early Modern Japanese, the 漢音 カイ was, in fact, クワイ.
The propagation of 漢音 was largely successful, but it did not supplant 呉音 entirely. If anything, new meanings of old words were borne from this wave of Chinese influence (see below). It is also often the case that, in general use, different ON readings produce different meanings. This can often be traced back to how individual Kanji in Chinese proper have also been attributed to more than one meaning (morpheme).
For example, 行 has the 呉音 ギョウ and the 漢音 コウ. ギョウ is associated with the meaning of “to act,” whereas the meaning of “to go” is associated with コウ. Words made after the propagation of 漢音 may still utilize コウ for the sense of “to act,” but this is a general dichotomy that can explain why ギョウ still appears.
In Buddhism, 漢音 did not successfully replace 呉音. For most sects, 呉音 remain the preferred readings for Kanji. This is not without exception, however. For instance, the “Principle of Wisdom Sutra (理趣経) of the Shingon sect (真言宗) is read with 漢音. As an example, the famous Buddhist phrase 如是我聞 meaning “thus, I hear,” ) is pronounced as ジョシガブン with 漢音 rather than ニョゼガモン with 呉音.
| 末期 | マッキ3 | Terminal | 経世 | ケイセイ | Conduct of state affairs |
| 文人 | ブンジン | Literary person | 土地 | トチ | Land |
| 幕府 | バクフ | Shogunate | 内裏 | ダイリ | Imperial palace |
| 女児 | ジョジ | Female child | 男女 | ダンジョ4 | Men and women |
| 白衣 | ハクイ | White robe | 老若 | ロウジャク | Young and old |
| 口頭 | コウトウ | Oral | 左右 | サユウ | Left and right |
| 遠近 | エンキン | Far and near | 兵隊 | ヘイタイ | Soldier |
| 達成 | タッセイ | Achievement | 質量 | シツリョウ | Mass |
The Sounds of Tang 唐音
Although ironically not brought into Japanese during the Tang dynasty, 唐音 – also known as （唐）宋音 – are any ON readings believed to have been introduced from the Kamakura Period to the Edo Period. Few examples can be found in Modern Japanese, but those that exist tend to relate to Zen Buddhism, trade, food, and furnishing terminology.
| 布団 | フトン | Futon | 納戸 | ナンド | Barn |
| 扇子 | センス | Folding fan | 北京 | ペキン | Beijing |
| 南京 | ナンキン | Nanjing | 瓶 | ビン | Bottle |
| 行脚 | アンギャ | Pilgrimage | 普請 | フシン | Construction; community activities |
| 箪笥 | タンス | Dresser | 杜撰 | ズサン | Sloppy |
| 看経 | カンキン | Silent reading of sutra | 炭団 | タドン | Charcoal briquette |
| 餡 | アン | Read bean paste | 湯麺 | タンメン | Chinese-style stir-fried vegetable noodle soup |
| 繻子 | シュス | Satin | 楪子 | チャツ | Type of lacquerware |
| 杏子 | アンズ | Apricot | 椅子 | イス | Chair |
| 石灰 | シックイ5 | Plaster | 胡散 | ウサン | Suspicious |
| 胡乱 | ウロン | Suspicious-looking | 橘飩 | キットン | Mashed sweet potatoes |
| 暖簾 | ノレン | Shop entrance curtain | 饅頭 | マンジュウ | Steamed yeast bun with filling |
| 明代 | ミンダイ | Ming Dynasty | 鈴 | リン | Bell |
| 提灯 | チョウチン | Paper lantern | 茴香 | ウイキョウ | Fennel (plant) |
“Traditional” ON Readings 慣用音
慣用音 are ON readings which are not derived from Chinese, but rather, underwent spontaneous changes within Japanese. The nature of those changes can be rather speculative at times, and there is also no particular criteria for determining whether a 慣用音 is not, in fact, still derived from Chinese.
| 輸出 | ユシュツ | Export |
| 攪拌 | カクハン | Agitation |
| 洗滌 | センジョウ | Washing |
| 涸渇 | コカツ | Drying up |
By definition, any reading that deviates from 呉音, 漢音, and 唐音 are deemed to be 慣用音 regardless of how they came about. Yet, there are specific scenarios that can be distinguished from each other.
百姓読み
Clear-cut examples of 慣用音 are those known colloquially as 百姓読み for being blatant mis-readings based on how the sound component (旁) is usually pronounced in other Kanji.
| Word | “Correct” Reading | “Traditional” Reading | Meaning |
| 洗滌 | センデキ | センジョウ | Washing |
| 攪拌 | コウハン | カクハン | Agitation |
| 消耗 | ショウコウ | ショウモウ | Consumption |
| 堪能 | カンノウ | タンノウ | Proficient; satiation |
| 稟議 | ヒンギ | リンギ | Reaching a decision by using a circular letter |
| 巨細 | コサイ | キョサイ | Particulars |
| 直截 | チョクセツ | チョクサイ | Direct; frank |
| 忌諱 | キキ | キイ | Displeasure |
| 異形 | イギョウ | イケイ | Grotesque |
Conflation of KUN As ON
字訓の字音化
On occasion, some KUN readings became reinterpreted as ON readings. Two prime examples of this are as follows:
①早速 is read as サッソク, but サッ does not constitute any of the Kanji’s ON readings. Instead, it derives from conflating the native prefix さ～ seen in words like 早苗 (rice seedlings) and 早乙女 (young woman) with サウ, the original spelling of ソウ, which is the Kanji’s ON reading.
②The KUN reading of 奥 おく has been reinterpreted as its ON reading in some words, supplanting オウ – its primary ON reading – entirely in some cases. In the chart below, the primary reading is shown in bold.
| Word | Readings | Meaning |
| 奥意 | オクイ | True intention |
| 奥地 | オクチ・オウチ | Backwoods |
| 内奥 | ナイオウ | Depths |
| 奥義 | オウギ・オクギ | Quintessence |
Final 「フ」Realizations in Modernity
Many ON readings ended in final consonants in the Chinese variety when they were subsequently introduced into Japanese. Japanese phonology has never accepted final consonants, and so vowel insertion (母音挿入) has always occurred. In the case that said final consonant was [p], it was rendered as フ in Japanese.
Many sound changes have since affected the pronunciation of フ, most notably, a sound change known as ハ行転呼 in which word-medial and word-final [p] became [w]. A classic example of this is how 蝶 (butterfly) would have initially been pronounced as [tepu], but as a result of this sound change, it changed to [teu] before ultimately becoming [tɕo:].
In medial position, some Kanji whose ON reading ended in the final consonant [p], in combination with a following mora which contained a stop/fricative consonant, resulted in 促音化 (gemination) of the consonant of the second element.
| Word | Reading | Meaning |
| 合戦 | カッセン | Battle |
| 法度 | ハット | Taboo/ordinance (middle ages) |
| 入声 | ニッショウ | Syllable ending in [p], [t], [k] in Middle Chinese |
Though this sound change is not reflected in most modern words using the same ON readings, there has been an overwhelmingly propensity for the final フ to realize as ツ, an attempt at being more conservative to the original Chinese pronunciation. These readings, however, are viewed as 慣用音 for not being rendered as ウ, as depending on the Kanji, some words are indeed realized as so.
| Word | Reading | Meaning | 解説 |
| 圧 | アツ | Pressure | Its ‘proper’ ON reading should be オウ (→アウ). |
| 合成 | ゴウセイ | Synthesis | 合’s 漢音 コウ (→カウ) is avoided, reverting back to its 和音 ゴウ. |
| 建立 | コンリュウ | Act of building | Both Kanji utilize their 呉音, but word-final instances of フ were more likely to be rendered as ウ in modernity, thus not being 慣用音. |
Conflating ON Readings
As mentioned earlier, with the reality that multiple ON Readings exist for most Kanji, some readings are differentiated based on meaning. Yet, there are instances in which one reading that ought to be used for a certain meaning is not used in favor of another reading.
The most exemplary case of this is with the Kanji 罷. It has two meanings: “to be tired” and “to stop.” For the first meaning, its ON reading is ヒ, and for the second meaning, its ON reading ought to be ハイ. However, the latter reading no longer exists in spoken Japanese and is entirely replaced with ヒ – ex. 罷免（ひめん）”dismissal.”
Unclassified Readings → 慣用音
Another strange subset of 慣用音 are those classified as such for no other reason than their etymology being obscure, despite being still obviously derived from a form of Chinese.
For example, 茶 meaning “tea” has the ON readings ダ (呉音), タ (漢音), and サ (唐音), yet its predominant reading is チャ. Though written off as a 慣用音, the fact that チャ more closely aligns with how the Kanji is pronounced in multiple modern Chinese vernaculars makes it clear that チャ did not spontaneous arise in Japan.
Another odd example is the reading ポン for 椪 (tangerine). This ON reading is believed to derive from Taiwanese, but since it entered Japanese via a route which no other ON reading took, it is classified as a 慣用音.
訓読み
Just as soon as Kanji were introduced into Japanese society, native Japanese words were being attributed to those Kanji. Those “readings,” in turn, are known as KUN readings. Of course, as has certainly been the case with ON readings, KUN readings, too, have changed and diversified significantly over time.
Typically, KUN readings correlate with basic vocabulary words native to Japanese. At times, they may even be compounds yet still be written with one Kanji.
| Word | Meaning |
| 雨（あめ） | Rain |
| 雲（くも） | Cloud |
| 歌（うた）う | To sing |
| 小（ちい）さい | Small |
| 湖（みずうみ） | Lake |
| 瞼（まぶた） | Eyelid |
| 炎（ほのお） | Flame |
There are also instances where several characters have received the same KUN reading. The hardest part about this is that options typically have specific nuances.
| はかる | 計る (to measure)・測る (to measure)・量る (to weigh)・諮る (to confer)・図る (to plot)・謀る (to devise) |
| とる | 取る (to take)・捕る (to catch)・執る・採る (to adopt/pick flowers)・撮る (to take a photo)・獲る (to capture)”・摂る (to take in nutrition)・盗る (to take as in “to steal”)・録る (to record) |
Today, KUN readings are generally not used to write ancillary words such as particles and other function words, but such Kanji spellings still exist.
| 迄（まで） | The particle まで |
| 也（なり） | The Classical Japanese copula verb |
| 御（おん・お・み） | Honorific prefix |
| 程（ほど） | The particle ほど |
| 位（くらい） | The particle くらい |
| 哉（かな） | The particle かな |
KUN Readings of Sino-Japanese Origin
Loanwords from Chinese languages did, in fact, enter Japanese before Japanese itself became a written language via Kanji. These ancient loanwords, however, are treated as KUN readings for the Kanji that represent them. Yet, when compared to the ON readings of those same Kanji, the relationship is undeniable.
| Word | KUN Reading | ON Readings | Meaning |
| 銭 | ぜに | セン (漢音)・ゼン (呉音) | Money |
| 梅 | うめ | バイ (漢音) | Plum |
| 馬 | うま | バ (漢音)・マ (呉音) | Horse |
| 筆 | ふで | ヒツ | Brush |
| 国 | くに | グン （→ 郡） | Region |
There are even some examples of ON readings which were misinterpreted as KUN readings later on because of how those words ultimately changed within the confines of Japanese.
| Word | Meaning | Etymology |
| 麹（こうじ） | Malted rice | From 麹子（キクシ） |
| 柚（ゆず） | Yuzu (citrus fruit) | From 柚（ユズ） |
Multiple KUN Readings
Though most Kanji typically do not have more than a few meanings, if not but one, those meanings are based on Chinese morphology. Upon Kanji being repurposed to signify Japanese morphology, most Kanji were attributed multiple KUN readings. In the case of some like 生, the exact number can be quite high.
| 生（い）きる | To live | 生（なま）～ | Raw |
| 生（む）す | To grow (moss) | 生（う）む | To give birth |
| 生（お）う | To spring up | ～生（ふ） | Thick growth |
| 生（は）える | To sprout | 生（は）やす | To cultivate |
| 生（き） | Undiluted | 生（うぶ）～ | Innocent; birth- |
| 生（な）る | To bear seed | 生（な）す | To have a child |
KUN Readings from Loanwords
外来語による訓読み
Native vocabulary is not the only source of KUN readings, as we have seen. They may even come from loanwords from Western languages. Some Kanji were even coined during the Meiji Restoration to account for new concepts which were being used that were considered too different to be assigned to existing Kanji. Their readings, in turn, are classified as KUN readings, as neither the Kanji nor their readings derive from Chinese.
| Word | Meaning |
| 頁（ぺーじ） | Page |
| 米（めーとる） | Meter |
| 哩（まいる） | Mile |
| 粨（へくとめーとる） | Hectometer |
| 籵（でかめーとる） | Decameter |
| 糎（せんちめーとる） | Centimeter |
| 粍（みりめーとる） | Millimeter |
| 粉（でしめーとる） | Decimeter |
| 瓦（ぐらむ） | Gram |
| 瓸（へくとぐらむ） | Hectogram |
| 瓧（でかぐらむ） | Decagram |
| 瓰（せんちぐらむ） | Centigram |
| 甅（みりぐらむ） | Milligram |
| 瓱（でしぐらむ） | Decigram |
| 立（りっとる） | Liter |
| 竡（へくとりっとる） | Hectoliter |
| 竍（でかりっとる） | Decaliter |
| 竕（せんちりっとる） | Centileter |
| 竰（みりりっとる） | Milliliter |
| 竓（でしりっとる） | Deciliter |
熟字訓
Some words in Japanese have etymologies which do not much up well with Chinese word formation, but because Kanji are still used to write words based on their meaning, this results in native Japanese words being assigned to Kanji irregularly on occasion. These irregular KUN readings are called 熟字訓（ジュクジクン）. Even if the word is from a language other than Chinese, the reading may be classified as a 熟字訓 so long as it is composed of at least two Kanji.
| Word | Meaning |
| 昨日（きのう） | Yesterday |
| 今日（きょう） | Today |
| 明日（あす・あした） | Tomorrow |
| 大人（おとな） | Adult |
| 梅雨（つゆ） | The rainy season |
| 紅葉（もみじ） | Autumn leaves |
| 太刀（たち） | Long sword |
| 百合（ゆり） | Lily |
| 無花果（いちじく） | Fig |
| 松明（たいまつ） | Torchlight |
| 浴衣（ゆかた） | Yukata |
| 大和（やまと） | Yamato |
| 煙草（たばこ） | Tobacco |
| 硝子（がらす） | Glass |
| 麦酒（びーる） | Beer |
| 躊躇（ためら）う | To hesitate |
| 相応（ふさわ）しい | Appropriate |
義訓
Before an irregular KUN reading matures into a 熟字訓, it first goes through a stage in which it is viewed as a context-exclusive spelling that the writer deems semantically close to the intended meaning of the Japanese word they wish to use. Such readings are known as 義訓. For instance, 宇宙 (universe) may be alternatively read and interpreted as meaning “sky” with the 義訓 of そら.
This realm of KUN readings is perhaps the most daunting, as there is no true limits to the creativity that an individual may have with them. Thankfully, whenever such readings are intended, they are almost always accompanied with Furigana, as otherwise, the word will not likely be read as intended.
| 漢字 | Typical Reading | 義訓 | Intended Meaning |
| 水晶 | スイショウ | くりすたる | Crystal |
| 生命 | セイメイ | いのち | Life |
| 接吻 | セップン | き（っ）す | Kiss |
| 衝撃 | ショウゲキ | しょっく | Shock |
| 内密 | ナイミツ | ないしょ | Secret |
These words demonstrate that there is also no limit as to the etymology of a 義訓. Meaning, they may be borne from native, Sino-Japanese, and loanwords.
連濁 & 露出形 vs 被覆形
There also readings morphologically limited to compound word formation, which still causes a headache to the non-native mind.
In the case of 連濁, an unvoiced consonant in initial position as part of the second element of a compound is subject to becoming voiced – see this lesson for more.
There are also vowel alternations observed when a morpheme is used in isolation (露出形) versus when it is the first element of a compound (被覆形) – see this lesson for more.
| Word | Reading | Meaning | Sound Change(s) |
| 人々 | ひとびと | People | 連濁 |
| 花火 | はなび | Fireworks | 連濁 |
| 平仮名 | ひらがな | Hiragana | 連濁 |
| 縁起 | エンギ | Omen | 連濁 |
| 子会社 | こガイシャ | Subsidiary | 連濁 |
| 仔熊 | こぐま | Bear cub | 連濁 |
| 女神 | めがみ | Goddess | 連濁 |
| 手紙 | てがみ | Letter | 連濁 |
| 雨雲 | あまぐも | Rain cloud | 連濁・露出形 vs 被覆形 |
| 木霊 | こだま | Tree spirit; echo | 連濁・露出形 vs 被覆形 |
名乗り
There also exists a rather large subset of KUN readings designated for use in personal names. This results in the same name being possibly spelled in various ways, and it may seem nearly impossible to properly read a random’s person name without assistance. Consider the many ways the name Hideyoshi can be spelled.
秀吉・秀義・英義・英吉・英喜・秀芳・英良・秀好・秀良・秀泰・栄良・英美・秀房・秀由・秀剛・秀嘉・秀衛・秀佳
While it can be deduced that ひで is often represented with 秀・英 and that よし is often represented with 吉・良・好・芳・義・嘉・喜, other Kanji may have just as prominent readings in names, thus causing overlap even within this sample. For instance, 秀剛 can be read as ひでつよ, and 栄良 can be read as エイリョウ or even as エ（イ）ら
To learn more about 名乗り, see this lesson.
音読み & 訓読み Combined
For the majority of words, ON readings and KUN readings are used separately within words; however, it would be a gross misstatement to imply that they cannot be used in tandem within compound words.
There are two types of such combinations: ON+KUN and KUN+ON compounds, which are respectively known in Japanese as 重箱読み and 湯桶読み.
重箱読み
A 重箱 is a multi-tiered box, and it is exemplary, as the name suggests, of a 重箱読み (ON-KUN compound word). Other examples include the following:
| Word | Reading | Meaning | Word | Reading | Meaning |
| 路肩 | ロかた | Shoulder (road) | 番組 | バンぐみ | TV program |
| 木目 | モクめ | Grain of wood | 客間 | キャクま | Parlor |
| 台所 | ダイどころ | Kitchen | 茶筒 | チャづつ | Tea caddy |
| 団子 | ダンご | Dumplings | 反物 | タンもの | Fabric |
| 額縁 | ガクぶち | Frame | 本屋 | ホンや | Book store |
| 残高 | ザンだか | Balance (bank) | 新顔 | シンがお | New face |
| 職場 | ショクば | Work place | 役場 | ヤクば | Town hall |
湯桶読み
A 湯桶 is a pail-like wooden container used to carry and serve hot liquids, and it is exemplary, as the name suggests, of a 湯桶読み (KUN-ON compound word). Other examples include the following:
| Word | Reading | Meaning | Word | Reading | Meaning |
| 場所 | ばショ | Place | 身分 | みブン | Social position |
| 消印 | けしイン | Postmark | 古本 | ふるホン | Old book |
| 見本 | みホン | Sample | 夕刊 | ゆうカン | Evening edition |
| 荷物 | にモツ | Luggage | 鶏肉 | とりニク | Chicken (meat) |
| 雨具 | あまグ | Rain gear | 薄化粧 | うすゲショウ | Light makeup |
| 高台 | たかダイ | High ground | 手帳 | てチョウ | Notebook |
| 野宿 | のジュク | Sleeping outdoors | 大損 | おおゾン | Major loss |
- These readings are also sometimes called 対馬音 or even 百済音 because it is said that a Paekje monk by the name of Hōmyō 法名 read the Vimalakirti Sutra (維摩経) with 呉音 at Tsushima. Paeka, known in Japanese as Kudara 百済, is one of the ancient Korean kingdoms. ↩︎
- The 律令 was the fundamental set of codes by which constituted in large part the early Japanese political system. ↩︎
- Whenever a word may be read with either 呉音 or 漢音, it is very likely that a difference in meaning has also developed. In the case of 末期, マッキ which utilizes 漢音 means “terminal/last days,” whereas マツゴ which utilizes 呉音 means “hour of death.” ↩︎
- The 呉音 ナンニョ is used in the set phrase 男女老若. Although this set phrase may also be read with 漢音, the individual sets 男女 and 老若 are meant to be read with 漢音. ↩︎
- シックイ is now normally spelled as 漆喰. 石灰 is typically read with the 漢音 セッカイ to mean “lime” as in limestone. ↩︎