おう

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See also: おお

Japanese

Etymology 1

Interjection

おう • (ō) 

  1. An informal greeting similar to hey. See also よう.
    おう、久(ひさ)しぶりだね。
    Ō, hisashiburi da ne.
    Hey, it's been a long time, hasn't it?
  2. An informal interjection similar to oh or oops.
    おう、しまった！
    Ō, shimatta!
    Oh, no!
  3. An informal affirmative response.
    「わかった？」「おう。」
    “Wakatta?” “Ō.”
    "You see?" "Got it."
    お、おう…
    O, ō…
    Uh, sure...

Etymology 2

For pronunciation and definitions of おう – see the following entries.
【王】1
a king, especially one who is not East Asian or was East Asian in pre-imperial times; in China and Vietnam, generally a king before Qin Shi Huangdi who invented the title 皇帝 (kōtei, “huangdi; emperor”); in Korea, one of the many kings before the Korean Empire which was modeled after Japan's; in Japan, one of the rulers before Emperor Jinmu
an East Asian queen regnant
a nobility title for a Chinese or Vietnamese prince, bestowed on one of the 皇帝 (kōtei, “huangdi; emperor”)'s adult sons, brothers, or nephews, especially as a coming-of-age title, generally comes with an estate ("principality"); compare 皇子 (ōji, “imperial princes”, especially pre-adult ones) and 公 (kō, “dukes”, an alternative used by certain dynasties)
a Japanese prince's son (such princes include 親王 (shinnō) or 王 (ō) themselves)
king
【黄】2
yellow
【央】3
centre, middle
(US) Short for 央州 (“Oregon (a state of the United States)”).
a male given name
【横】3
sideways, horizontal
self-willed; arbitrary; unrestrained and aggressive
sudden; unexpected
brimming
【応】5
respond, reply, answer (a question, call, etc.)
accept, admit, agree, consent
in accordance with
adequate, balanced, fitting, suitable
(rare) an acceptance, admittance, agreement, consent
a surname
【往】5
to go to, to head for
past, previous
【桜】5
cherry tree
cherry tree that bears edible fruit
(US) Short for サクラメント／桜府 (Sakuramento, “Sacramento (a city in California, United States)”).
【皇】6
emperor, mikado, tenno
【凹】S
concave
【押】S
to push; to press
【旺】S
prosperous; vigorous
【欧】S
Short for ヨーロッパ／欧羅巴 (Yōroppa, “Europe (a continent)”).
Short for ヨーロッパ／欧羅巴 (Yōroppa, “Europe (a continent)”).
【翁】S
old man
old man; venerable gentleman
(honorific) venerable; old; father
(humble, used by elderly men) I; me
【墺】H
Short for オーストリア／墺太利 (Ōsutoria, “Austria (a country)”).
(This term, おう, is the hiragana spelling of the above terms.)
For a list of all kanji read as おう, see Category:Japanese kanji read as おう.)

(The following entries are uncreated: 殴, 奥, 鷗, 媼, 嘔, 懊, 謳, 鶯.)

Etymology 3

For pronunciation and definitions of おう – see the following entries.
【追う】
to chase (after something)
to drive (force into an area)
to oust, to drive out, to exile, to expel
to be pressed, to be put under pressure
to pursue, to aspire to
to follow in order, to follow a trend
【負う】
to bear, to carry on one's back
to assume or take a responsibility
to be in a debt of gratitude
to suffer an injury
【生ふ】
(of plants or trees, archaic) to grow large, spring up
(This term, おう, is the hiragana spelling of the above terms.)
For a list of all kanji read as おう, see Category:Japanese kanji read as おう.)
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