いとこ

い

と

こ

Common wordJLPTN3Freq.FrequencyTop 20,000

Meanings

1

noun

cousin (male)

usually written using kana alone

Refers specifically to a male cousin. The female counterpart is 従姉妹 (いとこ). In modern Japanese, いとこ is often used without gender distinction in kana.

Written forms

いとこUsage60%
gikun (meaning-based reading) or jukujikun
Usually written in kana; the kanji spelling 従兄弟 is rare in modern writing.
従兄弟Usage33%
- いとこ
  gikun (meaning-based reading) or jukujikun
  Kanji spelling for male cousin; rarely used in practice. The reading いとこ is a jukujikun.
- じゅうけいてい
イトコUsage7%
じゅうけいてい

Kanji

従accompany, obey, submit to
兄elder brother, big brother
弟younger brother, faithful service to elders

Similar words

従姉妹いとこ
Refers to a female cousin. Both 従兄弟 and 従姉妹 are read いとこ, but the kanji distinguish gender.

Etymology

The reading いとこ is a jukujikun applied to the kanji 従兄弟, which literally means 'follow elder/younger brother'. The historical derivation of いとこ is uncertain.