汝うぬ

う

ぬ

Freq.FrequencyTop 20,000

Meanings

vulgar expression or word

Archaic second-person pronoun, often used with contempt or in a vulgar manner. In modern contexts, it can sound like an insult similar to 'you bastard' or 'blockhead'. Rarely used in everyday speech.

「うぬ、よくも騙だましたな！」と彼かれは怒ど鳴なった。
"You bastard, how dare you deceive me!" he shouted.
時じ代だい劇げきでは、悪あく役やくが「うぬ、覚おぼえておれ」と言いうことがある。
In period dramas, villains sometimes say, "You scoundrel, remember this!"

See all 3 example sentences ›

Kanji

汝you, thou
己self

Related words

貴き様さま
貴様 is the most common modern insulting 'you', while 汝 is rarer and sounds more archaic but carries a similarly contemptuous tone.
てめえN2
てめえ is a rough, colloquial insulting 'you' typical of angry speech, whereas 汝 sounds more old-fashioned or literary in its vulgarity.
己おのれ
おのれ can mean 'oneself' but is also used as a contemptuous 'you', much like 汝, though おのれ is more often heard in modern dramatic speech.
お前まえN3
お前 is a neutral-to-rude informal 'you' usable among friends, while 汝 is inherently vulgar or insulting and rarely used casually.

Don't confuse with

汝なんじ
汝 read as うぬ is a vulgar, contemptuous 'you', but the same kanji read as なんじ is a formal, archaic 'thou' with no insulting nuance.

Word family

汝うぬ等ら
you (plural); ye · I; me; we; us

Written forms

汝うぬ
Standard kanji form for this archaic/vulgar pronoun.
うぬUsage94%
ウヌUsage6%
己うぬ
Alternate kanji form; less common and may be confused with other readings like おのれ.

Etymology

The origin is uncertain. It may be related to the archaic first-person pronoun おの (己), with a shift in usage to second person. The kanji 汝 is a classical Chinese character for 'you', while 己 originally means 'self'.