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さだ Japanese meaning | Kotomora

さだ

さ

だ

Freq.FrequencyTop 10,000

Meanings

1

adverb

certainly; truly

archaicusually written using kana alone

Archaic adverb expressing certainty or truth. Not used in modern everyday Japanese; encountered mainly in classical texts or poetic language.

古こ歌かに「さだまこと我わが思おもふ人ひとは」とある。
In an old poem, there is a line: 'Truly, the person I long for...'

Kanji

定determine, fix, establish

Similar words

確たしかに
Modern standard word for 'certainly'; さだ is archaic and not interchangeable in contemporary speech.
真まことに
Modern formal/literary word for 'truly'; さだ is older and more restricted to classical contexts.

Etymology

The exact derivation is uncertain; it may be related to the classical adjective 定し (sadashi, 'certain, definite'), but the adverbial form さだ is archaic and its historical development is not well documented.