also: くすりゆ · やくゆ
medicated bath
A bath with medicinal herbs or substances added, often for therapeutic purposes.
風邪をひいたので、薬湯に入って温まった。
I caught a cold, so I took a medicated bath to warm up.
Only with reading やくとう
A liquid preparation made by boiling medicinal herbs; used in traditional medicine. Restricted to the reading やくとう.
漢方では、薬湯を煎じて服用することがある。
In Kampo medicine, a decoction is sometimes prepared and taken.
medicinal hot spring
Only with reading くすりゆ
A hot spring whose waters are believed to have healing properties. Restricted to the reading くすりゆ.
この地域には、皮膚病に効く薬湯がいくつかある。
In this area, there are several medicinal hot springs that are good for skin conditions.
Standard kanji spelling for the reading やくとう, covering medicated bath and decoction senses.
Kanji spelling for the reading くすりゆ, used specifically for medicinal hot springs.
Irregular kana reading; may be encountered but is not standard.
Compound of 薬 (medicine) and 湯 (hot water/bath). The different readings reflect different historical or contextual uses: やくとう is the Sino-Japanese reading, くすりゆ is the native Japanese reading, and やくゆ is an irregular variant.