を

See also: を゙

を U+3092, を HIRAGANA LETTER WO ← ゑ [U+3091] Hiragana ん → [U+3093]

Japanese

Stroke order

Etymology 1

Derived in the Heian period from writing the man'yōgana kanji 遠 in the cursive sōsho style.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): [β̞o̞]

• (obsolete, except in careful speech or when singing)

• IPA^(key): [o̞]

• Audio:

  (file)

Syllable

を • (o) 

1. (obsolete except as a particle) The hiragana syllable を (o). Its equivalent in katakana is ヲ (o). It is the forty-seventh syllable in the gojūon order; its position is わ行お段 (wa-gyō o-dan, “row wa, section o”).

Usage notes

In most cases outside its use as a particle, it is replaced by お.

See also

• (Hiragana) 平仮名; あぁ, いぃ, うぅゔ, えぇ, おぉ, かゕが, きぎ, くぐ, けゖげ, こ𛄲 (𛄲)ご, さざ, しじ, すず, せぜ, そぞ, ただ, ちぢ, つっづ, てで, とど, な, に, ぬ, ね, の, はばぱ, ひびぴ, ふぶぷ, へべぺ, ほぼぽ, ま, み, む, め, も, やゃ, 𛀆, ゆゅ, 𛀁, よょ, らら゚, りり゚, るる゚, れれ゚, ろろ゚, わゎわ゙, ゐ𛅐 (𛅐)ゐ゙, 𛄟 (𛄟), ゑ𛅑 (𛅑)ゑ゙, を𛅒 (𛅒)を゙, ん, ー, ゝ, ゞ, ゟ
• うぉ (wo)

Etymology 2

/wo/ → /o/

From Proto-Japonic *wo. Cognate with Okinawan ゆ (yu).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): [o̞]

• • The historical spelling is retained despite the modern pronunciation (as with は (wa) and へ (e)).
  • In songs or hyperformal contexts, the old pronunciation wo may be used.

Particle

を • (o) 

1. A case particle.
   1. (with transitive verb) An accusative case particle: a grammatical marker following the direct object of a verb.

      私(わたし)がリンゴを食(た)べる。

      Watashi ga ringo o taberu.

      I eat an apple.

      私(わたし)をリンゴが食(た)べる。

      Watashi o ringo ga taberu.

      An apple eats me.

      • As shown in the above two usage examples, Japanese sentences use particles to indicate subject and object, instead of using word order as in English.

      • 794, Shin'yaku Kegonkyō Ongi Shiki, page 85:

        渉險 上往也下左何之伎乎

        (please add an English translation of this quotation)

   2. (with intransitive verb) away from, off

      席(せき)を立(た)つ

      seki o tatsu

      to stand up from the seat

   3. (with intransitive verb) along, following a specified route, track, orbit, etc.

      廊(ろう)下(か)を走(はし)る

      rōka o hashiru

      to run down the corridor

      街(まち)を歩(ある)く

      machi o aruku

      to walk down the street

      北(ほっ)海(かい)道(どう)を流(なが)れる川(かわ)

      Hokkaidō o nagareru kawa

      a river that flows through Hokkaido

      地(ち)球(きゅう)のまわりを月(つき)がまわる。

      Chikyū no mawari o tsuki ga mawaru.

      The Moon orbits the Earth.

      • 1908, Natsume Sōseki, Yume Jūya [Ten Nights of Dreaming]‎:

        大(おお)空(ぞら)を落(お)ちている間(ま)

        ōzora o ochiteiru ma

        while it was falling through the sky

2. (archaic) A conjunctive particle, usually following the rentaikei of classical inflectible words.
   1. Resultative conjunction: expresses reason or cause.
      • c. 1001–1014, Murasaki Shikibu, Genji Monogatari

        わざとあめるを、早(はや)うものせよかし。

        Wazato a meru o, hayō monoseyo kashi.

        It seems to be a special [invitation], so please go early.

   2. Contrastive conjunction.
      • 1890, Mori Ōgai, The Dancing Girl:

        我(わが)身(み)だに知(し)らざりしを、怎(いか)でか人(ひと)に知(し)らるべき。

        Wagami dani shirazarishi o, ika de ka hito ni shiraru beki.

        Even I myself didn't know, so how could others know?

3. (archaic, literary) An interjectory particle, expressing sigh or emphasis.
   • c. 759, Man’yōshū, book 2, poem 108:
     , text

     我(あ)を待(ま)つと君(きみ)が濡(ぬ)れけむあしひきの山(やま)のしづくにならましものを

     A o matsu to / Kimi ga nureken / Ashihiki no / Yama no shizuku ni / naramashi mono o

     You probably got wet while waiting for me; ah, I wish I could become a waterdrop in the mountain.

Synonyms

• In highly informal speech, a lengthened vowel may be used instead of を: 手(て)ぇ上(あ)げろ ― tē agero ― raise your hands.

Etymology 3

For pronunciation and definitions of を – see the following entries.

【小お】1 [prefix] attached to certain nouns: [prefix] small in shape or scale [prefix] attached to certain names to give expression or feelings (Can we verify(+) this sense?) [prefix] used proverbially to represent "small" or "slight" (Can we verify(+) this sense?)

【悪お】3 [affix] hate; loathe

【尾お】S [noun] tail [noun] foot of a mountain [noun] end of something

【男お】1 [noun] a man [noun] a husband [noun] a male [noun] something large, powerful, or otherwise masculine

【苧お】H [noun] hemp or ramie [noun] thread made from the outer husk of the stems of hemp or ramie [noun] a textile made from this thread Alternative spelling 麻

【麻お】S [noun] the hemp or ramie plant [noun] thread or yarn made from fibers derived from the bark of hemp or ramie stems

【汚お】S [affix] dirty

(This term, を (wo), is a historical kana spelling of the above terms.) For a list of all kanji read as を, see Category:Japanese kanji read as を.)

References

• Unknown (794) Yoshinori Kobayashi, editor, Shin'yaku Kegonkyō Ongi Shiki (Kojisho Ongi Shūsei) (in Japanese), volume 1, Kyūko Shoin, published 1978, →ISBN.