おたまじゃくし

お

た

ま

じゃ

く

し

Freq.FrequencyTop 50,000

Meanings

1

usually written using kana alone

Only when written お玉じゃくし / お玉杓子

A kitchen utensil with a deep bowl and a long handle, used for serving liquids like soup or stew.

お味み噌そ汁しるをおたまじゃくしでよそう。
I serve miso soup with a ladle.

2

tadpole

usually written using kana alone

The aquatic larva of a frog or toad, with a round body and a long tail.

田たんぼでおたまじゃくしを捕つかまえた。
I caught tadpoles in the rice paddy.

3

usually written using kana alone

A colloquial, often humorous term for a musical note, likening its shape to a tadpole.

楽がく譜ふにおたまじゃくしがたくさん並ならんでいる。
There are lots of musical notes lined up on the sheet music.

See all 11 example sentences ›

Kanji

玉jewel, ball
杓ladle, scoop
子child, sign of the rat, 11PM-1AM
蝌tadpole
蚪tadpole

Related words

おたまN3
お玉杓子 is the full, formal name for the ladle that お玉 abbreviates in everyday kitchen speech, and it can also mean 'tadpole'.

Don't confuse with

カエルN1
蛙 is the adult amphibian, whereas おたまじゃくし is its aquatic larval stage (tadpole), so the two words describe different life stages of the same animal.

Written forms

オタマジャクシ
kana-only spelling
Katakana spelling, often used for emphasis or in informal contexts.
お玉たまじゃくし
Kanji spelling for the ladle sense; less common than kana.
お玉たま杓じゃく子し
Rare kanji spelling for the ladle sense.
蝌蚪おたまじゃくし
rarely-used kanji form
Rare kanji spelling for the tadpole sense; it is rarely used.

Etymology

From お玉杓子, a name for a round-bowled ladle, formed with honorific お and 玉杓子 “ladle.” The tadpole and musical-note senses arose from resemblance to this type of ladle.