drain, ditch, gutter

About this kanji

The kanji 溝, pronounced as "みぞ" in kun'yomi and "コウ" in on'yomi, primarily means "drain" or "ditch." This kanji is often used as a noun. You can find it in compounds like 水溝 (すいこう), meaning "drainage ditch," which helps carry away excess water, and 溝掃除 (みぞそうじ), meaning "drain cleaning," indicating the process of clearing debris from a ditch. Another example is 溝口 (みぞぐち), or "ditch entrance," referring to the open area at the start of a drain. A fun fact about this kanji is that it can also evoke images of deep, shadowy spaces, as seen in the phrase 暗い溝 (くらいみぞ), meaning "dark pit." Thus, although it often refers to physical drainage, it can carry a deeper, metaphorical meaning as well.

Built from

Example sentences

• 道路に溝ができている。

  A ditch has formed on the road.

Meanings across languages

English

drain, ditch, gutter

Tiếng Việt

mương, rãnh

日本語

みぞ, 溝

한국어

배수구, 도랑, 배수구

中文

排水沟, 壕沟, 水沟

id

saluran, parit, selokan

th

รางน้ำ, คู, ราง

es

drenaje, zanja, canal

fr

drain, caniveau, rigole

de

Graben, Rinnsal, Bord

pt

drenagem, vala, calha

Common compounds

• 水溝すいこうdrainage ditch
• 溝口みぞぐちditch entrance
• 溝掃除みぞそうじdrain cleaning
• 暗い溝くらいみぞdark pit