令色

令色

Japanese

Kanji in this term
令	色
れい Grade: 4	しょく Grade: 2
kan’on

Etymology

From the Analects of Confucius. Analysis: 令 (れい) (rei, “good, nice, lovely”) + 色 (しょく) (shoku, “look, expression”).

Pronunciation

• On’yomi
  • (Tokyo) れーしょく [rèéshókú] (Heiban – [0])[1]
  • IPA^(key): [ɾe̞ːɕo̞kɯ̟ᵝ]

Noun

令色 (hiragana れいしょく, rōmaji reishoku)

1. assuming deliberately nice and courteous looks in order to curry favor with someone; wearing a sycophantic expression

   巧 (こう)言 (げん)令 (れい)色 (しょく)鮮 (すくな)し仁 (じん)

   Kōgen reishoku sukunashi jin

   Honey words and flattering looks mean scarce benevolence in those who use them.

References

1. 2006, 大辞林 (Daijirin), Third Edition (in Japanese), Tōkyō: Sanseidō, →ISBN