いもうと
imōtostandard, own sister
Younger sister in hiragana is いもうと (imōto). The kanji spelling is 妹. The long う after も gives the sound "ō". It is also called いもうとさん (imōtosan).
Meaning: a female younger sibling (phrase)
Ways to say it
| Japanese | Romanization | Note |
|---|---|---|
| いもうと | imōto | standard, own sister |
| いもうとさん | imōtosan | polite, someone else's sister |
Use いもうと (imōto) for your own younger sister. For someone else's younger sister, say いもうとさん (imōtosan).
How does it change in a sentence?
Japanese marks age in sibling words. いもうと (imōto) is a younger sister and あね (ane) is an older one.
How do you pronounce it?
Say i-mō-to with a long middle vowel, close to "ee-moh-toh".
Did you know?
- The word いもうと (imōto) is also found in the classical language, where it could mean a younger sister or a wife.
Examples in context
- いもうとはじゅうごさいです。Imōto wa jūgosai desu.My younger sister is fifteen.
- いもうとさんはどこにいますか。Imōtosan wa doko ni imasu ka.Where is your younger sister?
- いもうとと かいものに いきました。Imōto to kaimono ni ikimashita.I went shopping with my younger sister.
Example conversation
Hana shows a photo to her friend Riku in Kyoto.
- Rikuこの子はだれ？Kono ko wa dare?Who is this girl?
- Hanaいもうとだよ。Imōto da yo.She is my younger sister.
- Rikuかわいいね。Kawaii ne.She is cute.
