What does “otome” mean in Japanese?
Native speakers say “otome” to mean ‘maiden’ or just ‘young girl’ in Japanese. Perhaps, some Japanese learners know this word as it is sometimes used in Japanese movies, songs, novels, manga, anime, and the like. In this blog post, however, I will explain this word in detail based on its kanji expression. And also, I will explain how to use it through example sentences. My explanations would help Japanese learners to understand “otome” more clearly. Then, let’s get started!
Contents
Definition and meanings of “otome”
Let me start with the definition and meanings of “otome”.
- otome – 乙女 (おとめ) : a noun meaning ‘maiden’ or just ‘young girl’ in Japanese. This can also work as plural. Learn more about Japanese plural.
Native speakers use this noun to refer to a young girl or girls in Japanese. In addition, they sometimes use this as a metaphor for a person or people who feel the way girls do.
The definition and meanings are simple and clear, I think. To understand this noun more clearly, however, let me explain its kanji characters in detail, one by one.
Otome in kanji
The kanji expression of “otome” consists of the following two characters:
- 乙 : a kanji character used to mean ‘young’ in the old Japanese language.
- 女 : a kanji character used to mean ‘woman’, ‘girl’, ‘female’, or such in Japanese. This kanji can also be found in other words like “josei“.
From these two kanji characters, we can understand that “otome” literally mean ‘young girl’ in Japanese. So, what the kanji characters express is completely in line with the meanings.
When we meet new kanji expressions, we should check their kanji characters in detail to understand their meanings clearly and deeply. In many cases, kanji characters tell us a lot about meanings of words they form. Actually, here, we could get the better understanding of “otome” through the detailed kanji check above.
Then, let me explain how to use “otome” through the example sentences below.
Example #1: how to say “young girls” in Japanese
kanojo tachi wa otome desu ne – 彼女達は乙女ですね (かのじょたちはおとめですね)
They are young girls, aren’t they?
Below are the new words used in the example sentence.
- kanojo – 彼女 (かのじょ) : a pronoun meaning ‘she’ in Japanese.
- tachi – 達 (たち) : a suffix used after a noun or pronoun to make its plural form. In the example, this is used after “kanojo” to make its plural form, “kanojo tachi”, which means ‘they’ in Japanese.
- wa – は : a binding particle working as a case marker or topic marker. In the example, this works after “kanojo tachi” to make the subject in the sentence.
- desu – です : an auxiliary verb used after a noun or adjective to make it polite. Probably, this is well known as a part of Japanese desu form. In the example, this is used after “otome” to make it sound polite.
- ne – ね : a sentence-ending particle used to ask for agreement softly. As the definition suggests, this is used at the end of the example sentence to ask for agreement softly. This has been reflected in the English sentence as “aren’t they?”
This is a typical usage of “otome”. When we want to say “young girl” or “young girls” in Japanese, this noun is a good option.
Example #2: another usage of “otome”
boku wa otome no kokoro wo mot te iru – 僕は乙女の心を持っている (ぼくはおとめのこころをもっている)
I have a girl’s mind.
Below are the new words used in the example sentence.
- boku – 僕 (ぼく) : a pronoun meaning ‘I’ in Japanese. This is used mainly by boys and young males.
- no – の : a case particle used to join two nouns. Normally, the first one can work as a modifier to describe the second. In the example, this is used to join “otome” and “kokoro”. The formed phrase literally means ‘girl’s mind’ in Japanese.
- kokoro – 心 (こころ) : a noun meaning ‘mind’, ‘feeling’, or such in Japanese.
- wo – を : a case particle used to make the object word in a sentence. In the example, this is used after “otome no kokoro” to make the object in the sentence.
- mot – 持っ (もっ) : one conjugation of the verb, “motsu”, which means ‘to have’ in Japanese. In the example, it has been conjugated for the better connection with its following word.
- te – て : a conjunctive particle used after a verb, adjective, or auxiliary verb to make its te form. In the example, this is used after “mot” to make its te form, “mot te”. Verbs need to be changed to their te forms to be connected with “iru”.
- iru – いる : an auxiliary verb used to express the continuity of the action described by the preceding verb. In the example, this is used after the te-formed verb, “mot te”, to express the continuity of its action, ‘to have’.
This is another typical usage of “otome”. In this example, it works as a part of the noun phrase, “otome no kokoro”, which literally means ‘girl’s mind’ in Japanese.
Summary
In this blog post, I’ve explained the definition and meanings of “otome” in detail based on its kanji expression. And also, I’ve explained how to use it through the example sentences. Let me summarize them as follows.
- otome – 乙女 (おとめ) : a noun meaning ‘maiden’ or just ‘young girl’ in Japanese. This can also work as plural. Native speakers use this noun to refer to a young girl or girls in Japanese. In addition, they sometimes use this as a metaphor for a person or people who feel the way girls do. These two kanji characters literally mean ‘young girl’ in Japanese. So, what the kanji characters express is completely in line with the meanings.
Hope my explanations are understandable and helpful for Japanese learners.
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