碾てん磑がい

also: みずうす

Meanings

noun

water-powered millstone

archaic

Archaic term for a millstone driven by water power. Found in historical documents; not used in modern Japanese.

碾てん磑がいは、昔むかしの水すい車しゃ小屋ごやで穀こく物もつを挽ひくのに使つかわれた。
The water-powered millstone was used to grind grain in old watermills.

Kanji

碾mortar, grind
磑mortar, hand mill
水water
碓pestle

Related words

水すい車しゃ
水車 is the common modern word for a waterwheel or watermill, while 碾磑 specifically refers to the millstone component driven by water.
石いし臼うす
石臼 is a general term for a stone mortar or hand mill, not necessarily water-powered.

Written forms

碾磑
- てんがい
  Archaic kanji compound; the reading てんがい is restricted to this spelling. Rarely encountered outside historical contexts.
- みずうす
水みず碓うすUsage100%
Alternate archaic spelling using 水 (water) and 碓 (pestle/mill). The reading みずうす is not restricted to a specific kanji form.
みずうす
Kana spelling for the reading みずうす, provided as a search aid. The word is normally written with kanji in historical texts.

Etymology

Compound of 碾 (grind with a roller) and 磑 (millstone). The reading てんがい is Sino-Japanese. The alternate form 水碓 combines 水 (water) and 碓 (pestle/mill) with the native reading みずうす.