淑しゅく徳とく

しゅ

く

と

く

Common wordFreq.FrequencyTop 100,000

Meanings

1

noun

womanly virtues

Refers to traditional feminine virtues such as modesty, grace, and moral refinement. Often used in educational or historical contexts.

淑しゅく徳とくを重おもんじる教きょう育いく方ほう針しんが掲かかげられている。
An educational policy that values womanly virtues is advocated.

彼かの女じょは淑しゅく徳とくを備そなえた人じん物ぶつとして尊そん敬けいされている。

She is respected as a person endowed with womanly virtues.

Usage patterns

〈人ひと〉が淑しゅく徳とくを身みにつけるfor someone to cultivate/acquire womanly virtues
彼かの女じょは学がっ校こうでお茶ちゃやお花はなを学まなび、淑しゅく徳とくを身みにつけた。
She studied tea ceremony and flower arranging at school and cultivated womanly virtues.
〈人ひと〉の淑しゅく徳とくをたたえるto praise someone's womanly virtue
先せん生せいは彼かの女じょの淑しゅく徳とくをたたえて表ひょう彰しょうした。
The teacher praised her womanly virtue and gave her an award.

Kanji

淑graceful, gentle, pure
徳benevolence, virtue, goodness

Related words

婦ふ徳とく
婦徳 is a more classical, Confucian-flavored term for womanly virtues, while 淑徳 is the word more often seen in modern school names and polite writing.
貞てい淑しゅく
貞淑 focuses narrowly on chastity and modest conduct in a woman, whereas 淑徳 covers a broader set of refined, virtuous qualities.
美び徳とく
美徳 means virtue or admirable quality in general for anyone, while 淑徳 specifically denotes virtues traditionally expected of women.

Don't confuse with

淑しゅく女じょ
淑女 means 'a lady, a refined woman' (a person), while 淑徳 means 'womanly virtue' (an abstract quality), despite sharing the kanji 淑.

Etymology

Compound of 淑 (graceful, modest) and 徳 (virtue). The exact historical derivation is uncertain, but the term has been used in Japanese to denote traditional feminine virtues since at least the Meiji era.