女の子

女の子

Japanese

Alternative forms

• 女のコ
• 女の児

Etymology 1

Kanji in this term
女	子
おんな Grade: 1	こ Grade: 1
kun’yomi

Compound of 女 (onna, “a woman”) +‎ の (no, possessive particle) +‎ 子 (ko, “a child”).[1][2]

Pronunciation

• Kun’yomi
  • (Tokyo) おんな​のこ [òńnáꜜnò kò] (Nakadaka – [3])[2][3]
  • IPA^(key): [õ̞nːa̠ no̞ ko̞]

Noun

女の子 (hiragana おんなのこ, rōmaji onna no ko, historical hiragana をんなのこ)

1. a child that is female: a girl
2. a woman

Synonyms

• 少女 (しょうじょ) (shōjo)
• 女児 (じょじ) (joji)
• 女性 (じょせい) (josei)

Antonyms

• 男 (おとこ)の子 (こ) (otoko no ko)

Related terms

• 男 (おとこ)の娘 (こ) (otoko no ko)

Etymology 2

Kanji in this term
女	子
め Grade: 1	こ Grade: 1
kun’yomi

Compound of 女 (me, “a woman; female”) +‎ の (no, possessive particle) +‎ 子 (ko, “a child”).[1][2]

Less commonly used than onna no ko above.

Pronunciation

• Kun’yomi
  • (Tokyo) め​のこ [méꜜnòkò] (Atamadaka – [1])[2][3]
  • IPA^(key): [me̞no̞ko̞]

Noun

女の子 (hiragana めのこ, rōmaji me no ko)

1. (archaic) a child that is female: a girl
2. (archaic) a woman

Synonyms

• 女性 (じょせい) (josei)

Antonyms

• 男 (お)の子 (こ) (o no ko)

References

1. 1988, 国語大辞典（新装版） (Kokugo Dai Jiten, Revised Edition) (in Japanese), Tōkyō: Shogakukan
2. 2006, 大辞林 (Daijirin), Third Edition (in Japanese), Tōkyō: Sanseidō, ISBN 4-385-13905-9
3. 1998, NHK日本語発音アクセント辞典 (NHK Japanese Pronunciation Accent Dictionary) (in Japanese), Tōkyō: NHK, ISBN 978-4-14-011112-3