羊
sheep
Readings
On'yomi
- ヨウ
Kun'yomi
- ひつじ
Nanori
- よ
Meaning
羊 centers on the animal sheep, including its use as a component in other characters.
Most common words using 羊
20 of 107- 羊ひつじN2
sheep (Ovis aries)
- 山羊やぎ
goat
- 羊毛ようもうN2
wool
- 羊羹ようかん
yōkan; jellied dessert made from red bean paste, agar, and sugar
- 羊歯しだ
fern (esp. species Gleichenia japonica); fernery
- 子羊こひつじ
lamb
- 羚羊かもしか
serow; wild goat
- 牧羊ぼくよう
sheep farming
- 羊水ようすい
amniotic fluid
- 羊皮紙ようひし
parchment
- 羊肉ようにく
mutton; lamb (meat)
- めん羊めんよう
sheep
- アンゴラ山羊アンゴラやぎ
Angora goat
- アンドロイドは電気羊の夢を見るか?アンドロイドはでんきひつじのゆめをみるか
Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep? (novel by Philip K. Dick, 1968)
- カシミア山羊カシミアやぎ
Cashmere goat
- チベット羚羊チベットかもしか
Tibetan antelope (Pantholops hodgsonii); chiru
- メリノ羊毛メリノようもう
merino wool
- 一群の羊いちぐんのひつじ
flock of sheep
- 三手篦羊歯みつでへらしだ
Java fern (Microsorum pteropus)
- 両面羊歯りょうめんしだ
upside-down fern (Arachniodes standishii)
Study
Etymology
羊 is a pictograph of a sheep, with the modern form showing horns, a face, and a body. The character has retained its sheep meaning throughout history.
Meaning mnemonic
The top strokes look like the curved horns of a sheep, the middle horizontal lines its face, and the vertical stroke its body. Together, 羊 is a sheep.
Reading mnemonic
For ヨウ, imagine a sheep saying 'yo!' as it greets you in the field: yo -> ヨウ.