rather, preferably, peaceful, quiet

About this kanji

The kanji 寧, pronounced as "ネイ" in on'yomi and "むしろ" in kun'yomi, primarily conveys meanings of peace and preference. It is often used in nouns rather than verbs. For example, 丁寧 (ていねい) means "polite," and it embodies the sense of care or respect. Another common compound, 寧ろ (むしろ), translates to "rather" or "preferably," indicating a choice. You might also encounter 安寧 (あんねい), meaning "public peace," which speaks to tranquility in society. A usage note: while 寧 is not used as frequently in everyday conversation, it appears in more formal contexts and written language, making it valuable to learn.

Example sentences

• 寧ろ静かにしてほしい。

  I'd rather you stayed quiet.

Meanings across languages

English

rather, preferably, peaceful, quiet, tranquility

Tiếng Việt

thà, yên tĩnh

日本語

寧

한국어

차라리

中文

宁

id

lebih baik, sebaiknya, damai, tenang, ketenangan

th

ค่อนข้าง, ควรจะ, เงียบสงบ, สงบเรียบร้อย, ความสงบ

es

más bien, preferiblemente, tranquilo, silencio, tranquilidad

fr

plutôt, préférablement, paisible, calme, tranquillité

de

eher, vorzugsweise, friedlich, ruhig, Ruhe

pt

mais bem, preferencialmente, tranquilo, silêncio, tranquilidade

Common compounds

• 丁寧ていねいpolite, courteous, civil
• 寧ろむしろrather, better, instead
• 安寧あんねい(public) peace, stability, tranquility
• 寧日ねいじつpeaceful day
• 康寧こうねいtranquility, tranquillity, peacefulness
• 静寧せいねいpeace, calm, tranquility
• 寧静ねいせいcalm, peace, tranquility
• 南寧なんねいNanning (China)