小間

小間

Japanese

Kanji in this term
小	間
こ Grade: 1	ま Grade: 2
kun’yomi

Pronunciation

• Kun’yomi
• IPA^(key): [ko̞ma̠]

Noun

小(こ)間(ま) • (koma) 

1. a small room; a narrow room

   Antonym: 広間 (hiroma)

2. a small amount of free time, a short break

   Synonyms: 暇 (hima), 合間 (aima)

3. (tea ceremony) a tea ceremony room smaller than 4.5 tatami mats

   Antonym: 広間 (hiroma)

   • 1983, Iguchi Kaisen, Sadō nyūmon [Introduction to tea ceremony], page 131:

     そして書(しょ)院(いん)式(しき)茶(ちゃ)室(しつ)は、この広(ひろ)間(ま)の方(ほう)に属(ぞく)する。小(こ)間(ま)の場(ば)合(あい)は、畳(たたみ)の数(かず)やその敷(し)き方(かた)によって、三(さん)畳(じょう)台(だい)目(め)、二(に)畳(じょう)中(なか)板(いた)、 […] などの名(めい)称(しょう)つけられる。

     Soshite Shoin-shiki chashitsu wa, kono hiroma no hō ni zoku suru. Koma no baai wa, tatami no kazu ya sono shiki kata niyotte, sanjō daime, nijō nakaita, […] nado no meishō tsukerareru.

     The Shoin-style tea house is associated with this hiroma type. In the case of koma, they are given names based on the number of tatami and how they are laid out, such as sanjō daime, nijō nakaita and so on.

4. (architecture) space between rafters; space between rafter and joist
5. (architecture) the visible portion of a roof tile
6. (historical) a unit of land area used to calculate a tax levied in Edo, equal to about 20 tsubo, or about 66 square meters
7. (uncommon) something small, narrow

   Synonym: 細かい (komakai, adjective)

See also

• 茶室(ちゃしつ) (chashitsu, “tea ceremony room”)
• 四畳半(よじょうはん) (yojōhan, “a small room”, literally “4.5 tatami mats”)