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Definition 2024

酸い

酸い

Japanese

Kanji in this term
酸
す
Grade: 5
kun'yomi

Adjective

酸い ‎(-i inflection, hiragana すい, romaji sui)

  1. vinegary, sour
    • c. 1120-1140, Konjaku Monogatarishū
      酒少 (さけすこ)し濁 (にご)りてすき様 (やう)なれど
      sake sukoshi nigorite suki yau naredo
      Although the sake seems a bit cloudy and sour...

Related terms

References

  1. ↑ 1988, 国語大辞典（新装版） (Kokugo Dai Jiten, Revised Edition) (in Japanese), Tōkyō: Shogakukan
  2. ↑ 2006, 大辞林 (Daijirin), Third Edition (in Japanese), Tōkyō: Sanseidō, ISBN 4-385-13905-9

Etymology

From the Middle Chinese noun for vinegar, probably 醋 ‎(tsʰuo, “vinegar”), plus the native Old Japanese adjective suffix し ‎(shi, modern い i).[1] Appears as early as the late Heian period, in the 今昔物語集 (Konjaku Monogatari Shū, “Anthology of Tales from Today and Yesterday”).

The adjective's older terminal form of sushi remains as the derivation of the modern noun 寿司 ‎(sushi).

The spelling with the kanji 酸 is based on synonyms in Chinese: 酢, 醋, and 酸 all have senses related to sour, and all three can be used in Japanese to spell su ‎(“vinegar”).

Pronunciation

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