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眩い (まばゆい) Japanese meaning | Kotomora

眩まばゆい

ま

ば

ゆ

い

Freq.FrequencyTop 50,000

Meanings

1

i-adjective

dazzling; glaring; dazzlingly beautiful

usually written using kana alone

Describes light so bright it is hard to look at, or something so beautiful it is metaphorically dazzling.

夏なつの太たい陽ようがまばゆい。
The summer sun is dazzling.
彼かの女じょの

笑え

顔がお

は

まばゆい

ほど

美うつく

しかっ

た

。

Her smile was dazzlingly beautiful.

Written forms

眩まばゆいUsage24%
Standard kanji spelling, though the word is usually written in kana.
まばゆいUsage71%
Kana spelling is the most common written form.
目映まばゆいUsage4%
Alternate kanji spelling, less common than 眩い.

Kanji

眩faint, dizzy
目eye, class, look
映reflect, reflection, projection

Similar words

眩まぶしい
まぶしい is the more common word for 'dazzling' or 'glaring'. まばゆい is slightly more literary and often used for metaphorical brilliance.

Etymology

Derived from 目 (ma, 'eye') + 映ゆ (hayu, 'to shine'). The exact historical development is uncertain, but the word has been used since classical Japanese.