柔ら

Japanese

Kanji in this term
柔
やわ Grade: S
kun’yomi

Alternative spellings
和ら 軟ら

Etymology

⟨yapara⟩ → /jaɸara/ → /jawara/

From Old Japanese.

The stem yawa- is cognate with 柔柔 (yawayawa, “soft feeling”).

Pronunciation

• (Tokyo) やわら [yàwárá] (Heiban – [0])
• IPA^(key): [ja̠ɰᵝa̠ɾa̠]

Adjective

柔(やわ)ら • (yawara) ^{←やはら (yafara)?}

1. something fragile, soft, or supple
2. something calm or gentle

Derived terms

• 柔(やわ)らか (yawaraka)
• 和(やわ)らぐ (yawaragu)
• 柔(やわ)ら掛(が)かり (yawaragakari)

Noun

柔(やわ)ら • (yawara) ^{←やはら (yafara)?}

1. a martial art involving gentleness, such as judo or jujitsu
2. (nautical) a kind of straw ball dropped near the boat's side, used to reduce impact

See also

• 柔(じゅう)術(じゅつ) (jūjutsu)
• 柔(じゅう)道(どう) (jūdō)

Old Japanese

Etymology

From やは (yapa-, stem meaning “gentle, soft”) +‎ 等 (-ra, nominalizing and pluralizing suffix).

Noun

柔ら (yapara) (kana やはら)

1. something fragile, soft, or supple

Derived terms

• 根柔ら小菅 (ne yapara ko₁suge₂)

Descendants

• Japanese: 柔ら (yawara)