あい

See also: アイ and Appendix:Variations of "ai"

Japanese

Etymology 1

For pronunciation and definitions of あい – see the following entries.

【哀】S [noun] grief; sorrow; sadness; lamentation [noun] pity; sympathy

【愛】4 [noun] love [noun] affection [noun] tenderness [noun] fondness, liking [noun] This term needs a translation to English. [noun] (Christianity) agape [proper noun] a female given name [proper noun] a surname [affix] love [affix] (US) Short for 愛州 (“Idaho (a state of the United States)”).

【隘】H [affix] narrow; confined

【埃】H [noun] one ten-billionth

【娃】J [affix] beauty, beautiful girl (generally only used in names)

【靄】H [affix] mist, haze [affix] mistiness, haziness

【藍】S [noun] the Japanese indigo or Chinese indigo plant, Persicaria tinctoria [noun] the color indigo, from the dye processed from the stems and leaves of various indigo plants [noun] Short for 藍蝋 (airō): indigo pigment made from boiled-down indigo dye liquid [proper noun] a female given name [proper noun] a surname Alternative spelling アイ

【鮎】J [noun] (obsolete) ayu or sweetfish (Plecoglossus altivelis)

(This term, あい (ai), is the hiragana spelling of the above terms.) For a list of all kanji read as あい, see Category:Japanese kanji read as あい.)

Etymology 2

Alternative spelling
相

From Old Japanese stem form of verb あう (au): to meet, to be together, etc.

Pronunciation

• (Tokyo) あい [áꜜì] (Atamadaka – [1])
• IPA^(key): [a̠i]

Prefix

あい • (ai-) ^{←あひ (afi-)?}

1. mutual, together, each other

   相(あい)手(て) ― aite ― partner; opponent

   兄弟(きょうだい)はいつも相(あい)戦(たたか)うものだ。

   Kyōdai wa itsumo ai-tatakau mono da.

   Brothers (siblings) will always fight (with each other).

2. used in official or epistolary writings for elegance or politeness

Etymology 3

Alternative spellings
合い 合

Same as above.

Pronunciation

• (Tokyo) あい [àí] (Heiban – [0])
• IPA^(key): [a̠i]

Suffix

あい • (-ai) ^{←あひ (-afi)?}

1. mutual, together, each other, meeting

   意(い)味(み)合(あ)い ― imiai ― implication, shade of meaning, nuance

Noun

あい • (ai) ^{←あひ (afi)?}

1. Short for 合い服 (あいふく, aifuku, “clothing worn in spring or autumn”).

Etymology 4

Alternative spellings
合い 会い

Pronunciation

• (Tokyo) あい [áꜜì] (Atamadaka – [1])
• IPA^(key): [a̠i]

Verb

あい • (ai) ^{←あひ (afi)?}

1. stem or continuative form of あう (au) [godan]

Etymology 5

Alternative spelling
間

Pronunciation

• (Tokyo) あい [áꜜì] (Atamadaka – [1])
• (Tokyo) あい [àí] (Heiban – [0])
• IPA^(key): [a̠i]

Noun

あい • (ai) ^{←あひ (afi)?}

1. (literary or dialectal) interval of time or space; time; during; between; leisure

   歯(は)の間(あい)にものが挟(はさ)む ― ha no ai ni mono ga hasamu ― something is sticking between the teeth

2. relation; relationship; terms (between people)

   夫(ふう)婦(ふ)間(あい)が悪(わる)い ― fūfu ai ga warui ― the husband and wife are on bad terms

3. Short for 間狂言 (aikyōgen).
4. Short for 間駒 (aigoma).
5. Short for 間の手 (ai no te).

Synonyms

• (interval of time or space): 間(ま) (ma), 間(あいだ) (aida), 合(あい)間(ま) (aima)
• (relationship between people, terms): 間(あいだ)柄(がら) (aidagara), 仲(なか) (naka)

Etymology 6

Pronunciation

• (Tokyo) あい [áꜜì] (Atamadaka – [1])
• IPA^(key): [a̠i]

Interjection

あい • (ai) 

1. (informal) clipping of はい (hai)

Okinawan

Noun

あい (ai) 

1. 蟻: ant