Only with reading きょう
Refers to the historical imperial capital, especially Kyoto. Often used in historical or traditional contexts.
Kyoto is known as the thousand-year capital.
final word of the iroha poem
Only with reading きょう
Specifically the last word of the classical iroha poem. This is a fixed literary reference, not a productive meaning.
See also: いろは歌
The last character of the iroha poem is 京.
ten quadrillion; 10^16
A numeric unit meaning 10^16 (ten quadrillion). Usually read as けい, but きょう is also possible. Rare in everyday use; mainly encountered in large-number contexts.
One 京 is 10 to the 16th power.
going to Tokyo; going to the capital
western capital; Kyoto
imperial capital · heaven
being in the capital; residing in Tokyo
return to Tokyo; return to the capital
Beijing opera; classical Chinese opera
the two capitals
former capital region; Kyoto and its environs
kyokabe; Kyoto-style clay wall
Kyoto woman; woman from Kyoto
capital official (ritsuryō system)
capital style; fashionable style of the capital
direction of Kyoto; Kansai area; citizens of Kyoto; nobles
Kyoto dyeing; Kyoto-dyed textiles
capital (esp. Kyoto)
Kyoto merchant · well-informed and loose-lipped Kyotoite
Standard kanji spelling for the imperial capital and the numeric unit.
The kanji 京 originally depicted a high hill or capital city. Its use for the numeric unit 10^16 is a later extension, possibly from the idea of a 'great number'.