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兎に角. In DICTIOUS you will not only get to know all the dictionary meanings for the word
兎に角, but we will also tell you about its etymology, its characteristics and you will know how to say
兎に角 in singular and plural. Everything you need to know about the word
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兎に角 will help you to be more precise and correct when speaking or writing your texts. Knowing the definition of
兎に角, as well as those of other words, enriches your vocabulary and provides you with more and better linguistic resources.
Japanese
Etymology
Shift from とにかくに (to ni kaku ni), itself composed of と (to, “in that way”) + に (ni, particle) + 斯く (kaku, “in this way”) + に (ni, particle).[1][2]
The kanji spelling literally means “horns on a rabbit”, but this is merely ateji (当て字). It is perhaps an allusion to Literary Chinese 龜毛兔角 (guīmáotùjiǎo, “an impossibility”, literally “hair on a turtle, horns on a rabbit”).
Pronunciation
Adverb
兎に角 • (tonikaku)
- anyway, anyhow, in any case, be that as it may
Usage notes
This term is more commonly written in hiragana, as とにかく.
Synonyms
References
- ^ Shōgaku Tosho (1988) 国語大辞典（新装版） (in Japanese), Tōkyō: Shogakukan, →ISBN
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 Matsumura, Akira, editor (2006), 大辞林 (in Japanese), Third edition, Tokyo: Sanseidō, →ISBN
- ^ NHK Broadcasting Culture Research Institute, editor (1998), NHK日本語発音アクセント辞典 (in Japanese), Tokyo: NHK Publishing, Inc., →ISBN