Expressions 柔じゅう 剣けん 棒ぼう jūkenbō; body, sword and staff techniques 柔じゅう よく 剛ごう を 制せい す softness overcomes hardness; the weak can defeat the strong through flexibility Kanji 柔 tender, weakness, gentleness Related words 柔らかい is the everyday adjective meaning 'soft' or 'tender', while 柔 is the abstract noun form used in more formal or philosophical contexts.
柔和 describes a person's gentle, mild temperament, whereas 柔 is the broader abstract quality of softness or pliability itself.
Word family· 20 judo
flexible; pliable; soft · calisthenics
winning over; placation; gentle persuasion
jujitsu; jiujitsu; jujutsu
indecisive; irresolute; weak-willed
Show 9 more Show fewer hardness and softness; strength and flexibility
simple; plain; honest; unaffected; frank; unpretentious
soft hair; downy hair; fur · intestinal villus
intestinal villus · villus (botany)
parenchymal cell
parenchyma
flexibility; pliability; elasticity
judo hall; judo dojo
judo practitioner; judoka
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Written forms 柔じゅう
Standard kanji form for this noun.
じゅう Usage 100%
Etymology The kanji 柔 represents the concept of softness or pliability. The reading じゅう is the on'yomi, used in compound words and abstract contexts. The exact historical derivation is uncertain.
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