Friday, February 15, 2008

要 - I NEED a Woman from the West


Readings & Meanings:

い(る)

ヨウ

かなめ

require, necessary、pivot

Common Usage:

必要

肝心要

要る

Examples:

必要に応じて、砂糖を加えて下さい。

肝心要の婿が式場に来ていないぞ。

何か要るものがあればおっしゃってください。

Translations:

Add sugar as necessary.

But look, the most important son-in-law-to-be isn't even in the marriage hall yet!

If there's anything you want, just ask.*

Bonus:

Up top is 西, kinda, and down below is 女. In actuality, the above radical is 襾 (which is still called "nishi" just like 西), and the pictographic origin is just bizarre. Check it out if interested: http://www.kanjinetworks.com/knetwork/KOG.html#KOG31

I, however, prefer to put together the idea of "west" and "woman," as you can see in the title of this post.

Important:

Even though they're both pronounced いる, don't confuse 要る (to need) with 居る (to be). Think of the western woman: you don't just want to be with her, you NEED her.

References:

*http://eow.alc.co.jp/%e8%a6%81%e3%82%8b/UTF-8/?ref=sa
http://www.thejapanesepage.com/kanji/kanji/u.htm

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