慈悲 (じひ, jihi) Japanese meaning: mercy

慈悲 (じひ, jihi) Japanese meaning: mercy | Kotomora

Kanji

慈mercy
悲grieve, sad, deplore

Related words· 7

情なさけN1sense 1
情け is the everyday word for sympathy or kindness toward others, while 慈悲 carries a more formal, often religious or philosophical sense of compassion.
哀あわれみ sense 1
哀れみ focuses on pity for someone weak or suffering, whereas 慈悲 expresses a broader, principled compassion, often religious in tone.
同どう情じょうN1sense 1
同情 is the common word for sympathy with another's feelings, while 慈悲 implies a deeper, often religiously motivated mercy.
憐れん憫びん sense 1
憐憫 is a literary, formal word for pity or compassion, similar in register to 慈悲 but without its religious connotation.

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慈じ愛あい
慈悲 emphasizes compassion or mercy, often in a Buddhist or moral sense, while 慈愛 focuses on warm, nurturing love, especially parental.
仁じん
慈悲 carries religious overtones of mercy and compassion, whereas 仁 focuses on benevolence as a secular, ethical virtue.
恵めぐみN1
慈悲 focuses on compassionate mercy shown toward the suffering, while 恵み is broader and can describe any beneficial gift or grace, not just mercy.

Opposites

冷れい酷こくN1sense 1
冷酷 describes a cold, merciless attitude, the direct opposite of the warm compassion expressed by 慈悲.

Don't confuse with

自じ費ひ sense 1
自費 is pronounced the same as 慈悲 but means paying at one's own expense, an unrelated concept.
慈じ愛あい
慈愛 and 慈悲 both suggest compassionate love, but 慈悲 leans toward mercy or forgiveness while 慈愛 leans toward warm, protective affection.

Counted with

羽わN3sense 2
慈悲 in its rare bird-name sense (the hawk-cuckoo) is counted with 羽, the standard counter for birds.

Word family

無む慈じ悲ひ
merciless; ruthless; pitiless; unfeeling
慈じ悲ひ心しん
compassion; merciful heart; benevolence
慈じ悲ひ殺さつ
mercy killing without consent
慈じ悲ひ心しん鳥ちょう
rufous hawk-cuckoo; northern hawk-cuckoo

Etymology

From Buddhist terminology, combining 慈 (じ, 'affection, kindness') and 悲 (ひ, 'pity, sorrow'). The bird name is an abbreviation of 慈悲心鳥, literally 'compassion-heart bird', referring to its call.

慈じ悲ひ

Meanings

Usage patterns