# 書く
## Japanese

* Kanji in this term
* 書
* か Grade: 2
* kun'yomi

### Etymology

From Old Japanese, ultimately from Proto-Japonic *kaku (“to scratch”).
First attested in the Kojiki of 712 CE.
Cognate with 掻く (kaku, “to scratch”) (letters were originally scratched or carved into wood in order to write).

### Pronunciation

* (Tokyo) かく [káꜜkù] (Atamadaka – [1])
* IPA: [ka̠kɯ̟]
* Tokyo pitch accent of conjugated forms of 「書く」
Source: Online Japanese Accent Dictionary :
| Stem forms ||||
| Terminal (終止形) Attributive (連体形) | 書く | かく | [káꜜkù] |
| Imperative (命令形) | 書け | かけ | [káꜜkè] |
| Key constructions ||||
| Passive | 書かれる | かかれる | [kàkáréꜜrù] |
| Causative | 書かせる | かかせる | [kàkáséꜜrù] |
| Potential | 書ける | かける | [kàkéꜜrù] |
| Volitional | 書こう | かこー | [kàkóꜜò] |
| Negative | 書かない | かかない | [kàkáꜜnàì] |
| Negative perfective | 書かなかった | かかなかった | [kàkáꜜnàkàttà] |
| Formal | 書きます | かきます | [kàkímáꜜsù] |
| Perfective | 書いた | かいた | [káꜜìtà] |
| Conjunctive | 書いて | かいて | [káꜜìtè] |
| Hypothetical conditional | 書けば | かけば | [káꜜkèbà] |

### Verb

書(か)く • (kaku) transitive godan (stem 書(か)き (kaki), past 書(か)いた (kaita))
* to write; to record (words, figures) on the surface of (something)
    昨日陳(きのうチェン)さんは図書館(としょかん)でレポートを書(か)いていました。
       Kinō Chen-san wa toshokan de repōto o kaite imashita.
       Mr. Chen was writing a report at the library yesterday.
* to compose; to put (an idea, etc) into words

#### Conjugation

Katsuyōkei ("stem forms") :
| Mizenkei ("imperfective") | 書か | かか | kaka |
| Ren’yōkei ("continuative") | 書き | かき | kaki |
| Shūshikei ("terminal") | 書く | かく | kaku |
| Rentaikei ("attributive") | 書く | かく | kaku |
| Kateikei ("hypothetical") | 書け | かけ | kake |
| Meireikei ("imperative") | 書け | かけ | kake |
| Key constructions ||||
| Passive | 書かれる | かかれる | kakareru |
| Causative | 書かせる 書かす | かかせる かかす | kakaseru kakasu |
| Potential | 書ける | かける | kakeru |
| Volitional | 書こう | かこう | kakō |
| Negative | 書かない | かかない | kakanai |
| Negative continuative | 書かず | かかず | kakazu |
| Formal | 書きます | かきます | kakimasu |
| Perfective | 書いた | かいた | kaita |
| Conjunctive | 書いて | かいて | kaite |
| Hypothetical conditional | 書けば | かけば | kakeba |
Stem forms :
| Irrealis (未然形) | 書か | かか | kaka |
| Continuative (連用形) | 書き | かき | kaki |
| Terminal (終止形) | 書く | かく | kaku |
| Attributive (連体形) | 書く | かく | kaku |
| Realis (已然形) | 書け | かけ | kake |
| Imperative (命令形) | 書け | かけ | kake |
| Key constructions ||||
| Negative | 書かず | かかず | kakazu |
| Contrasting conjunction | 書けど | かけど | kakedo |
| Causal conjunction | 書けば | かけば | kakeba |
| Conditional conjunction | 書かば | かかば | kakaba |
| Past tense (firsthand knowledge) | 書きき | かきき | kakiki |
| Past tense (secondhand knowledge) | 書きけり | かきけり | kakikeri |
| Perfect tense (conscious action) | 書きつ | かきつ | kakitu |
| Perfect tense (natural event) | 書きぬ | かきぬ | kakinu |
| Perfect-continuative tense | 書けり 書きたり | かけり かきたり | kakeri kakitari |
| Volitional | 書かむ | かかむ | kakamu |

#### Derived terms

* 描(えが)く (egaku)
* 画(えが)く (egaku)

#### Related terms

* 掻(か)く (kaku)

### References

* ↑ “書・描”, in 日本国語大辞典‎ (in Japanese), concise edition, Tokyo: Shogakukan, 2006
* ↑ 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
   * 2002, Ineko Kondō; Fumi Takano; Mary E Althaus; et. al., Shogakukan Progressive Japanese-English Dictionary, Third Edition, Tokyo: Shōgakukan, →ISBN.