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Kotomora

卑

lowly, base, vile, vulgar, despise

JLPTN1StatusJōyō · secondary schoolFrequencyTop 5,000Strokes9

Readings

On'yomi

  • ヒ

Kun'yomi

  • いや.しい
  • いや.しむ
  • いや.しめる

Meaning

卑 centers on low status or worth: something base, vulgar, or contemptible. The meanings 'lowly', 'vile', and 'despise' all flow from this idea of looking down on something inferior.

Most common words using 卑

20 of 40
  • 卑怯ひきょう
    N2

    cowardly; craven

  • 卑猥ひわい

    indecent; obscene

  • 卑劣ひれつ
    N1

    mean; contemptible; despicable; dirty; foul; cowardly; base

  • 卑しいいやしい
    N1

    lowborn; humble; lowly

  • 卑屈ひくつ

    servile; subservient; obsequious; slavish; self-abasing; grovelling; spineless

  • 卑下ひげ

    self-abasement; self-depreciation; humility

  • 男尊女卑だんそんじょひ

    male domination of women; male chauvinism; subjection of women

  • 下卑るげびる

    to become vulgar; to coarsen

  • 女尊男卑じょそんだんぴ

    placing women above men

  • 卑俗ひぞく

    vulgar; coarse; low

  • 卑小ひしょう

    petty; trifling

  • 下卑げび

    vulgarity; coarseness; crudeness

  • 卑しい生まれいやしいうまれ

    lowborn; of humble birth

  • 卑しからぬいやしからぬ

    respectable; decent

  • 卑しみいやしみ

    contempt

  • 卑しむいやしむ

    to despise; to disdain; to scorn; to hold in contempt; to look down on

  • 卑しむべきいやしむべき

    despicable

  • 卑しめるいやしめる

    to demean; to despise; to treat with contempt; to abase

  • 卑下も自慢の中ひげもじまんのうち

    taking pride in one's humility is a form of bragging; he that humbleth himself wishes to be exalted; too much humility is pride

  • 卑下自慢ひげじまん

    boasting of one's humility

Explore all words using 卑 →

Study

Etymology

卑 is thought to depict a hand holding a lowly object or a servant's tool, conveying the idea of low status. The exact historical development is uncertain.

Meaning mnemonic

The top looks like a head bowed down, and the bottom 十 suggests a cross or mark of lowliness. Picture a servant bowing low, marked as base and vulgar.

Reading mnemonic

For ヒ, imagine a lowly servant being hit (ヒ) as a sign of contempt: the sound 'hit' cues ヒ while the servant cowers in a lowly position.