younger brother (of an older brother); younger sister (of an older sister)
Archaic term for a younger sibling from the perspective of an older sibling of the same sex. In modern Japanese, 弟 (おとうと) is used for younger brother and 妹 (いもうと) for younger sister.
In classical Japanese, an older brother called his younger brother 'oto'.
Archaic noun for the youngest child in a family. This usage is obsolete; modern Japanese uses 末っ子 (すえっこ) or 末子 (まっし).
'Oto' is an old word for the youngest child and is hardly used today.
The '弟' in 'Ototachibana-hime' is read 'oto' and is a prefix meaning young woman.
弟 (おと) was once used archaically for the youngest child in a family, a sense now expressed by 末っ子.
弟 (おと) archaically covered a younger sibling of either sex when speaking of a same-sex sibling, whereas 妹 is the modern word specifically for 'younger sister'.
counter for people
sworn younger brother; junior male peer
younger pupil (of the same master); younger disciple; junior member
younger brother (polite, archaic)
younger daughter
younger brother's wife; sister-in-law (younger brother's spouse)
Standard kanji for this archaic word; the reading おと is not used in modern Japanese for 'younger brother'.
Alternate kanji form, also archaic; may be encountered in old texts.
The historical derivation is uncertain. The kanji 弟 and 乙 are conventionally associated with the meanings 'younger sibling' and 'youth', but the word おと itself is archaic and its origin is not clearly documented.
parent's younger brother; uncle
younger son
killing one's younger brother; fratricide