人妻

Chinese

		man; person; people	wife; to marry off (a daughter)
trad. (人妻)		人	妻
simp. #(人妻)		人	妻

Pronunciation

• Mandarin

  (Pinyin): rénqī

  (Zhuyin): ㄖㄣˊ ㄑㄧ

• Cantonese (Jyutping): jan⁴ cai¹

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• Mandarin
  • (Standard Chinese)⁺
    • Hanyu Pinyin: rénqī
    • Zhuyin: ㄖㄣˊ ㄑㄧ
    • Tongyong Pinyin: rénci
    • Wade–Giles: jên²-chʻi¹
    • Yale: rén-chī
    • Gwoyeu Romatzyh: renchi
    • Palladius: жэньци (žɛnʹci)
    • Sinological IPA ^(key): /ʐən³⁵ t͡ɕʰi⁵⁵/
• Cantonese
  • (Standard Cantonese, Guangzhou–Hong Kong)⁺
    • Jyutping: jan⁴ cai¹
    • Yale: yàhn chāi
    • Cantonese Pinyin: jan⁴ tsai¹
    • Guangdong Romanization: yen⁴ cei¹
    • Sinological IPA ^(key): /jɐn²¹ t͡sʰɐi̯⁵⁵/

Noun

人妻

1. (another person's) wife; married woman

   幸福人妻  ―  xìngfú rénqī  ―  happily married woman

   已成人妻  ―  yǐ chéng rénqī  ―  (of a woman) to be already married

Usage notes

In modern times, this term is sometimes considered to have sexual connotations.

Coordinate terms

• 人夫 (rénfū)

Japanese

Kanji in this term
人	妻
ひと Grade: 1	つま > づま Grade: 5
kun'yomi

Alternative forms

• 他妻
• (one's husband): 他夫

Etymology

From 人(ひと) (hito, “person”) + 妻(つま) (tsuma, “wife, spouse”).

The tsuma changes to zuma as an instance of rendaku (連濁).

Pronunciation

• (Tokyo) ひとづま [hìtózúmá] (Heiban – [0])
• IPA^(key): [çito̞zɨma̠]

Noun

人(ひと)妻(づま) • (hitozuma) 

1. a married woman
2. one's or other's wife

   Synonym: 妻 (tsuma)

3. (obsolete) by extension of one's or other's spouse, one's or other's husband
   • c. 759, Man’yōshū, book 13, poem 3314:
     , text here

     つぎねふ山背(やましろ)道(ぢ)を人夫(ひとづま)の馬(うま)より行(ゆ)くに己夫(おのづま)し徒歩(かち)より行(ゆ)けば見(み)るごとに音(ね)のみし泣(な)かゆそこ思(おも)ふに心(こころ)し痛(いた)したらちねの母(はは)が形(かた)見(み)と我(わ)が持(も)てるまそみ鏡(かがみ)に蜻蛉(あきづ)領巾(ひれ)負(お)ひ並(な)め持(も)ちて馬(うま)買(か)へ我(わ)が背(せ)

     tsuginefu Yamashiro-ji o hitozuma no uma yori yuku ni onozumashi kachi yori yukeba miru-goto ni ne-nomi shi nakayu soko omou ni kokoro shi itashi tarachine no haha ga katami to waga moteru masomi-kagami ni akizuhire oiname mochite umakae wagase

     Down the highway to peak-strung Yamashiro[,] other husbands go mounted on their horses' backs, but my own husband trudges down that road on foot. Each time I see him[,] sobs come welling from my throat; when I think of it[,] my heart is sore within me. Take then the keepsake of my mother who fed me the milk of her breasts, this flawless-fine mirror she left me, and my dragonfly scarves--pack them up and take them away, go and buy a horse, my love.

Derived terms

• 人妻(ひとづま)児(こ)ろ (hitozuma koro)