処女

処女

See also: 處女 and 处女

Japanese

Kanji in this term
処	女
しょ Grade: 6	じょ Grade: 1
on’yomi

Etymology

From Middle Chinese 處女 (MC t͡ɕʰɨʌ^X|t͡ɕʰɨʌ^H ɳɨʌ^X|ɳɨʌ^H). /syodyo/ > /syozyo/

Originally referred in Japanese to a woman in a house ([家 (いえ)に]処 (い)る女 (おんな) ie ni iru onna), more specifically to an unmarried woman.

Pronunciation

• (Tokyo) しょ​じょ [shóꜜjò] (Atamadaka – [1])[1]
• IPA^(key): [ɕo̞ʑo̞]

Noun

処女 (shinjitai kanji, kyūjitai kanji 處女, hiragana しょじょ, rōmaji shojo, historical hiragana しょぢょ)

1. unmarried woman
2. virgin (female who has not had sexual experience)

   30歳 (さんじゅっさい)の処 (しょ)女 (じょ)

   sanjussai no shojo

   30-year-old virgin

3. virginity

   彼氏 (かれし)に処 (しょ)女 (じょ)をあげる

   kareshi ni shojo o ageru

   give her virginity to her boyfriend

   処 (しょ)女 (じょ)を奪 (うば)う

   shojo o ubau

   to take a girl's virginity

   処 (しょ)女 (じょ)を失 (うしな)う

   shojo o ushinau

   to lose one's virginity

4. for the first time; maiden (voyage, publication etc)

Synonyms

• (virgin): 生娘 (きむすめ) (kimusume)

Derived terms

• 処 (しょ)女 (じょ)性 (せい) (shojosei)
• 処女作 (しょじょさく) (shojosaku)

 

See also

• 童 (どう)貞 (てい) (dōtei): male virgin
• (not to be confused with) 少 (しょう)女 (じょ) (shōjo): a young girl

References

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