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あるいは (aruiha) Japanese meaning: or | Kotomora

あるいは

あ

る

い

は

Common word›JLPTN3›Freq.FrequencyTop 2,000

Meanings

1

or; either ... or

usually written using kana alone

Connects two alternatives, often in the pattern AかBか. Note that は is pronounced わ.

コーヒーか紅こう茶ちゃ、あるいはジュースはいかがですか。

Would you like coffee, tea, or juice?

電でん話わあるいはメールでご連れん絡らくください。

Please contact us by phone or email.

2

maybe; perhaps; possibly

usually written using kana alone

Expresses uncertainty or a tentative suggestion; often used at the beginning of a sentence.

あるいは彼かれはもう帰かえったかもしれません。
Perhaps he has already gone home.
あるいは、別べつの方ほう法ほうを試ためしてみてはどうですか。
Maybe you could try a different method.

3

some ... and others ...; sometimes ... and at other times ...

usually written using kana alone

Used in the paired pattern あるいは…あるいは… to list contrasting examples or alternating states.

あるいは泣なき、あるいは笑わらい、彼かれらは話はなし続つづけた。
Sometimes crying, sometimes laughing, they kept talking.
あるいは赤あか、あるいは青あおの旗はたが風かぜに揺ゆれていた。
Some flags were red and others blue, fluttering in the wind.

Usage patterns

〈物もの〉か、あるいは〈物もの〉かeither A or B
電でん話わか、あるいはメールで連れん絡らくしてください。
Please contact me either by phone or by email.
あるいは〈事こと〉かもしれないit might perhaps be that ...
あるいは彼かれは来こないかもしれない。
Perhaps he won't come.
あるいは〈事こと〉、あるいは〈事こと〉sometimes X, sometimes Y (listing alternating states)
あるいは徒と歩ほで、あるいは自じ転てん車しゃで通つう学がくする。
Sometimes I walk to school, other times I go by bicycle.

Grammar

あるいはOr; perhapsN3

Kanji

或some, one, or

Related words· 8

またはN4sense 1
または is a slightly more formal written equivalent of あるいは when meaning 'or', common in legal or official text.
もしかしたらN3sense 2
もしかしたら expresses the same tentative 'maybe' as あるいは but sounds more colloquial and is often paired with かもしれない.
もしくはN1sense 1
もしくは is an even more formal 'or', typically found in official documents, whereas あるいは fits both casual and formal registers.
多た分ぶんN5sense 2
たぶん conveys a stronger degree of probability ('probably') than the more tentative 'perhaps' sense of あるいは.

Show 4 more

それともN3sense 1
それとも is used to offer a contrasting alternative especially in questions (AかそれともBか), while あるいは works in statements as well as questions.
ｏｒ
あるいは is a more formal or literary way to say 'or', whereas ｏｒ feels informal or techy and is often written in Latin script.
またN5
あるいは is a formal conjunction meaning 'or', while また is more casual and typically combines into または to express the same idea.
ひょっとするとN2

Don't confuse with

あるN3
或る (ある, 'a certain') shares the kanji 或 with あるいは but is an attributive word meaning 'a certain [noun]', not a conjunction for 'or' or 'perhaps'.

Written forms

あるいはUsage98%
Standard modern spelling; the word is almost always written in kana.
或あるいはUsage2%
Kanji form is literary and rarely used in everyday writing.
或あるいはUsage<1%
search-only kanji form
Historical kanji spelling; included for search coverage.

Etymology

Formed from ある, the attributive form of あり “to exist,” followed by the particles い and は. It originally meant “some … while others …” and developed its alternative and possibility senses.

あるいは is a formal word that can mean 'perhaps' but also 'or', unlike ひょっとすると which only expresses tentative possibility.