wherefore, a reason
On'yomi (音読み)
- ユ
- ユウ
- ユイ
Kun'yomi (訓読み)
- よし
- よ.る
About this kanji
The kanji 由 primarily means 'reason' or 'wherefore.' It is commonly used as a noun, representing a cause or explanation for something. You will often find it in several important compounds, such as 理由 (りゆう), which means 'reason,' 自由 (じゆう) for 'freedom,' and 経由 (けいゆ), meaning 'going through' or 'via.' This kanji is useful in everyday conversations, for example, when talking about why something happened or how to describe liberties. A note to remember is that it can also denote the underlying cause of an event, so it adds depth to discussions about motivation and explanation.
Example sentences
自由な選択が許されている。
Free choices are permitted.
Meanings across languages
- English
- wherefore, a reason
- Tiếng Việt
- lý do
- 日本語
- 理由
- 한국어
- 이유
- 中文
- 由来
- id
- karena itu, sebuah alasan
- th
- เพราะฉะนั้น, เหตุผล
- es
- por eso, una razón
- fr
- pourquoi, une raison
- de
- darum, ein Grund
- pt
- por que, um motivo
Common compounds
- 経由けいゆgoing through, going via, going by way of
- 自由じゆうfreedom, liberty
- 理由りゆうreason, grounds, pretext
- 自由化じゆうかliberalization, liberalisation, freeing
- 不自由ふじゆうdiscomfort, inconvenience, poverty
- 由緒ゆいしょhistory, pedigree, lineage
- 由来ゆらいorigin, source, history
- 自由形じゆうがたfreestyle (e.g. swimming event)
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