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Originally a compound of 蛙(kaeru, “frog”) + 手(te, “hand”), with the te changing to de due to rendaku (連濁), and the ru dropping out over time. From the way the palmate leaves resemble a frog's foot.[1][2]
a color scheme for 襲(kasane, “layered kimono”, literally “layering”), where both the outer and inner layers are lightgreen
a kind of 家紋(kamon, “family crest”), featuring a maple-leaf design
(term of endearment) a child's hand (from the resemblance in shape between a hand with splayed fingers and a maple leaf)
Usage notes
As with many terms that name organisms, this term is often spelled in katakana, especially in biological contexts (where katakana is customary), as カエデ.
楓紅葉(kaede momiji): maple leaves that have turned red in autumn; a style of layered clothing with light yellow-green on the outside and yellow or orange-red on the inside
As with many terms that name organisms, this term is often spelled in katakana, especially in biological contexts (where katakana is customary), as カツラ.
The katsura reading is rare for this kanji. When referring to the katsura tree, the 桂 spelling is used more often to avoid confusion.
From Old Japanese. Alternative spelling for 男桂(okatsura, “male katsura”), an archaic name for the katsura tree.[1] Compare 女桂(mekatsura, “female katsura: the cinnamon tree”). Appears with this reading in the 和名類聚抄(Wamyō Ruijushō), a Japanese dictionary of Chinese characters completed in 938.
As with many terms that name organisms, this term is often spelled in katakana, especially in biological contexts (where katakana is customary), as フウ.
楓葉(fūyō): maple leaves that have turned red in autumn
Idioms
Idioms
楓呉江に落つ(fū Gokō ni otsu): “the fū leaves falling in Wujiang” → being disappointed in the reality of something after having lofty ideas about it; from a story in the New Book of Tang about an inspiring poem from an otherwise uninspiring poet
楓葉衰えて盧橘花開く(fūyō otoroete rokitsu hana hiraku): “the red sweetgum/maple leaves fade, and the kumquat flowers open” → a metaphor for the turning of the seasons
References
↑ 1.01.11.21.31.4Shōgaku Tosho (1988) 国語大辞典(新装版) [Unabridged Dictionary of Japanese (Revised Edition)] (in Japanese), Tōkyō: Shogakukan, →ISBN