layperson; laity; worldly person
Primarily a Buddhist term contrasting ordinary people with monks or clergy. Also used more broadly for someone without specialized knowledge in a field.
僧侶と俗の生活は大きく異なる。
The lives of monks and laypeople are very different.
This is what's commonly called an 'urban legend.'
In this field, I am a complete layperson.
worldly customs; common practices
Refers to the manners, fashions, or ways of ordinary society, often with a nuance of being unrefined or not elevated.
都会の俗に染まらず、田舎で静かに暮らしたい。
I want to live quietly in the countryside without being influenced by city ways.
na-adjective, noun which may take the genitive case particle 'no'
Describes something widespread among ordinary people, often without negative connotation. Used in compounds like 俗に言う (commonly called).
この花は俗に「金魚草」と呼ばれている。
This flower is commonly called 'snapdragon'.
それは俗な考え方だ。
That's a common way of thinking.
na-adjective, noun which may take the genitive case particle 'no'
Carries a negative judgment of being coarse, tasteless, or lacking elegance. Antonym of 雅 (が, elegance).
Antonyms: 雅 (が)
彼の趣味は俗だと言われている。
His taste is said to be vulgar.
あの看板は俗っぽいデザインだね。
That sign has a tacky design, doesn't it?
He renounced worldly life and became a monk.
After moving to the city, he became tainted by worldly ways.
世俗 specifically names the secular, everyday world as opposed to religious life, while 俗 in this sense more generally means worldly customs or manners.
通俗 describes something simplified or made popular for the general public, while 俗 in this sense is the plainer word for something ordinary or widespread.
下品 focuses on crude or tasteless behavior and manners, while 俗 in its sense of 'vulgar' more broadly labels art, taste, or style as lowbrow.
elegance; grace; refinement · festal song (genre of the Shi Jing)
俗 means 'secular/worldly', the classic opposite of 聖 'sacred/holy' as in the phrase 聖と俗.
俗 means vulgar or commonplace, the direct opposite of the refined, courtly grace expressed by 雅.
俗 refers to the secular or worldly, standing in contrast to 聖なる, which marks something as sacred or holy.
manners; customs · public morals · sex industry; sex service; sex-oriented entertainment
folk customs; folkways; ethnic customs
worldly things; common customs; ordinary life · the world; the common people; the masses · secularity
vulgar; lowbrow; coarse
worldly-minded person; materialist; philistine; snob
common name; popular name · secular name (of a Buddhist monk)
popular belief; common saying; folklore
colloquialism; slang; colloquial language
Standard kanji spelling; high-frequency in news and general use.
Kana spelling used when the kanji is avoided or for clarity in informal writing.
The kanji 俗 originally depicted a person in a valley, symbolizing common people. The reading ぞく is the standard Sino-Japanese on'yomi. The obsolete reading しょく is a historical variant.
this world; mundane life; earthly existence
popular; common; accessible to the masses
manners and customs; folkways; usage
vulgar; coarse; lowbrow
return to secular life; secularization
vulgar; tasteless; cheap; low-brow
vulgar; coarse; low
vulgar person; uncultured person; worldly person · layperson; ordinary person (not a priest)
commonly called; popularly known as; in everyday language
vulgarization; becoming vulgar
worldly affairs; everyday matters; daily chores
popular belief; folk saying; common lore
layperson's appearance; secular appearance · unrefined appearance; vulgar style
folk belief; popular superstition
worldly priest; corrupt monk
mediocre scholar; pedant
secular affairs; worldly cares; daily routine
vulgarization; secularization; popularization