Usage patterns 〈 人ひと 〉 を 妻つま にする to make someone one's wife; to marry (a woman)
He decided to make her his wife.
刺さし 身み に 妻つま を 添そ える to garnish sashimi with shredded daikon or similar trimmings
I served the sashimi garnished with shredded daikon.
酒さけ の 妻つま にする to have something as a little something to go with one's drink
I had this as a little something to go with my drink.
妻つま と 離り 婚こん する to divorce one's wife
妻つま に 先さき 立だ たれる to have one's wife die before oneself; to be widowed
His wife passed away before him.
Expressions 我わ が 妻つま my spouse; my wife; my husband 糟そう 糠こう の 妻つま devoted wife; wife who has shared hardships; wife married in poverty Related words· 12 女房 is a casual, colloquial word for one's wife with a slightly old-fashioned or blunt feel, while 妻 is plainer and more neutral.
嫁 is a colloquial, informal word for wife (originally meaning bride/daughter-in-law), whereas 妻 is the neutral standard term.
妻 is the neutral, everyday word for wife, while 母さん as 'wife' is a colloquial, slightly old-fashioned way a husband refers to his own spouse.
妻 is the neutral, register-flexible word for one's own wife, while 家内 is specifically humble and only used when speaking to outsiders about one's own wife.
Show 8 more Show fewer 妻 is the neutral, standard word for one's own wife, while 嫁さん is a casual, affectionate term used in everyday conversation.
妻 is the neutral, everyday word a person uses for their own wife, while 奥さん is an honorific term used to refer to someone else's wife.
妻 is the plain modern word for 'wife', while 東 （あずま ） is an old poetic term for one's spouse.
妻 is the neutral, everyday word for 'wife,' whereas 良妻 specifically evaluates her as a good, capable wife.
妻 is the everyday, gendered word for 'wife', while 配偶 is a formal, gender-neutral legal term for 'spouse'.
妻 specifically means 'wife' and is the common, casual term, while 配偶者 is the formal, gender-neutral legal term for either spouse.
妻 is the everyday modern word for 'wife', whereas 妻子 in its archaic sense also means 'wife' but is rarely used that way today.
妻 is the neutral, unmarked word for one's own wife, while 奥様 is a polite term used for another person's wife or to address a married woman.
Opposites 夫 means "husband," the direct opposite of 妻 "wife."
主人 in the sense of 'husband' is the direct counterpart to 妻 , meaning 'wife'.
Politeness 奥さん is the polite word used to refer to someone else's wife (and casually to one's own), while 妻 is the plain, neutral term.
家内 is a humble, somewhat old-fashioned way to refer to one's own wife, whereas 妻 is the neutral modern term.
夫人 is an honorific term used for someone else's wife, while 妻 is the neutral, humble term used to refer to one's own wife.
Counted with The everyday counter for people: 一人 (ひとり ), 二人 (ふたり ), 三人 (さんにん ).
More formal than 人 — used for headcounts in reservations, staff lists, and announcements (5名様 ).
Word family· 25 Show 9 more Show fewer traditional Japanese magic
gable wall
pair of wooden interior doors · door to a Heian-period pavilion
very young bride; child bride; childish wife
loving wife; beloved wife
sleight of hand
expat wife; wife of an expatriate employee
cheated-on wife; wife whose husband is unfaithful
wife who has had an affair
See all 25 in Explore →
Written forms 妻つま Usage 100%
Standard common spelling for the meaning "wife." For the garnish or accompaniment meanings, kana つま is usually clearer and more common.
具つま
rarely-used kanji form
Rare kanji spelling for the garnish or accompaniment sense; 具 is normally read ぐ in many other words.
Etymology つま is a native Japanese word. 妻 is the standard kanji spelling for the spouse sense, while the garnish and accompaniment senses are usually written in kana; their exact historical relationship to the spouse sense is uncertain.
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