Kanji 冗 superfluous, uselessness Related words 無む 駄だ 無駄 is the common word for 'waste' or 'uselessness' in everyday speech. 冗 is more formal and often appears in written language or compounds.
冗じょう 談だん 冗談 means 'joke' or 'jest', literally 'redundant talk'. It is a very common compound using 冗 .
Word family· 14 joke; jest; funny story
verbose; wordy; long-winded; tediously long · redundancy; redundant
redundant phrase; pleonasm · joke; jest
supernumerary; excess personnel; surplus staff · useless staff; deadwood
superabundance; excessive abundance
Show 7 more Show fewer supernumerary official; redundant official
redundancy; superfluous text
verbosity; wordiness; long-windedness
redundancy; superfluity
unnecessary work; unnecessary expense
worthless painting and writing
chatter; useless words; verbiage
See all 14 in Explore →
Etymology The kanji 冗 originally meant 'superfluous' or 'useless'. The reading じょう is the on'yomi. The word is mainly used in compounds; standalone usage is relatively rare.
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