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オットセイ (ottosei) Japanese meaning: fur seal | Kotomora

オットセイ

お

っ

と

せ

い

Freq.FrequencyTop 50,000

Meanings

1

fur seal; northern fur seal; Alaskan fur seal

usually written using kana alone

Refers to fur seals, especially the northern fur seal (Callorhinus ursinus).

オットセイは北きた太たい平へい洋ように生せい息

そく

し

て

いる

。

Fur seals inhabit the North Pacific.

水すい族ぞく館かんでオットセイのショーを見みた。

I saw a fur seal show at the aquarium.

Kanji

膃fat, corpulent
肭new moon
臍navel
獣animal, beast

Don't confuse with

アザラシ
アザラシ is an earless true seal, whereas オットセイ (fur seal) is an eared seal more closely related to アシカ.

Written forms

オットセイUsage97%
kana-only spelling
Katakana spelling is standard; the word is usually written in kana.
おっとせいUsage1%
Hiragana spelling, also used.
膃肭臍おっとせいUsage1%
rarely-used kanji form
Rare kanji form; not commonly used.
膃肭獣おっとせい
rarely-used kanji form

Etymology

From Chinese 膃肭臍, originally the name of a medicinal preparation made from a fur seal’s reproductive organ; in Japanese the name was transferred to the animal itself.

Rare kanji form; not commonly used.