タコ

た

こ

Common wordJLPTN1Freq.FrequencyTop 10,000

Meanings

1

usually written using kana alone

The animal, also commonly used for octopus as food.

今こん夜やはタコの刺さし身みを食たべよう。

Let's have octopus sashimi tonight.

2

usually written using kana alonecolloquial

Colloquial, mildly insulting term for a foolish person. Often used in a teasing or light-hearted way.

ばかN3sense 2
タコ used as an insult is a milder, more teasing way to call someone foolish, while 馬鹿 is the more direct, general word for 'idiot'.

イカN1sense 1
タコ (octopus) and イカ (squid) are both common cephalopods used in Japanese cooking, but they are anatomically distinct animals with different numbers of arms.
凧たこN1
凧 (たこ) is a flying kite while 蛸 (たこ) is the sea creature octopus; they share pronunciation but are unrelated in meaning.

匹ひきN3
counter for small animals · counter for rolls of cloth · archaic counter for horses · roll of cloth

タコUsage62%
kana-only spelling
Katakana spelling is the most common written form.
たこUsage27%
Hiragana spelling is also common.
蛸たこUsage11%
Kanji form; rarely used in practice. The word is usually written in kana.
章魚たこUsage<1%

The origin is uncertain. The word is native Japanese, and the kanji 蛸 is a Chinese character adopted for its meaning.

eggcase of the winged argonaut · winged argonaut (Argonauta hians)

Show 6 more

rarely-used kanji form

Rare kanji form.

鮹たこ

rarely-used kanji form

Rare kanji form.