松まつぼっくり

ま

つ

ぼ

っ

く

り

Freq.FrequencyTop 100,000

Meanings

noun

pinecone

The seed-bearing cone of a pine tree. The word is a compound of 松 (pine) and ぼっくり (a mimetic word for something round and lumpy).

Kanji

松pine tree
毬burr, ball
陰shade, yin, negative
嚢pouch, purse, bag

Related words

松まつかさ
Also means pinecone, but 松かさ is less common and more literary or old-fashioned. 松ぼっくり is the everyday word.

Written forms

松まつぼっくりUsage42%
Standard modern spelling; the most common written form.
まつぼっくりUsage58%
Kana spelling is common and avoids rare kanji.
松毬
rarely-used kanji form
- まつぼっくり
  Rare kanji form; the character 毬 is not commonly used.
- まつふぐり
  rarely-used kana form
- まつぼくり
  rarely-used kana form
松陰嚢
rarely-used kanji form
- まつぼっくり
  Very rare kanji form; 陰嚢 means 'scrotum', reflecting a humorous or old-fashioned name for pinecone.
- まつふぐり
  rarely-used kana form
- まつぼくり
  rarely-used kana form
まつふぐり
rarely-used kana form
まつぼくり
rarely-used kana form

Etymology

Developed from 松ふぐり, literally “pine testicles,” a name referring to the cone’s shape. Intermediate and regional forms include 松ぼくり, from which modern 松ぼっくり developed.