# ま

| ま | U+307E, &#12414; HIRAGANA LETTER MA |
| ← ぽ [U+307D] | Hiragana | み → [U+307F] |

## Japanese
### Pronunciation

* IPA: [ma̠]

### Etymology 1

Derived in the Heian period from writing the man'yōgana kanji 末 in the cursive sōsho style.

#### Syllable

ま • (ma)
* The hiragana syllable ま (ma). Its equivalent in katakana is マ (ma). It is the thirty-first syllable in the gojūon order; its position is ま行あ段 (ma-gyō a-dan, “row ma, section a”).

##### See also

* (Hiragana) 平仮名; あぁ, いぃ, うぅゔ, えぇ, おぉ, かゕが, きぎ, くぐ, けゖげ, こご, さざ, しじ, すず, せぜ, そぞ, ただ, ちぢ, つっづ, てで, とど, な, に, ぬ, ね, の, はばぱ, ひびぴ, ふぶぷ, へべぺ, ほぼぽ, ま, み, む, め, も, やゃ, ゆゅ, よょ, ら, り, る, れ, ろ, わゎ, ゐ, ゑ, を, ん, ー, ゝ, ゞ, ゟ

### Etymology 2

* Alternative spelling
* 間

#### Pronunciation

* (Tokyo) ま [mà] (Heiban – [0])
* IPA: [ma̠]

#### Noun

ま • (ma)
* 間: space; room

##### Synonyms

* 中(なか) (naka)

##### Derived terms

* 床(とこ)の間(ま) (toko no ma)
* 茶(ちゃ)の間(ま) (cha no ma)
* 束(つか)の間(ま) (tsuka no ma)
* 間(ま)に合(あ)う (ma ni au)
* 間(ま)もなく (ma mo naku)

### Etymology 3

* Alternative spelling
* 目
From Old Japanese. Appears to be the older, bound form of 目 (me$_2$). See that entry for further details.
Probably cognate with 見る (miru, “to see”) and 芽 (me, “bud”). Never found in isolation in modern Japanese. Remains as the first syllable of various compounds.

#### Pronunciation

* IPA: [ma̠]

#### Noun

ま • (ma)
* 目, 眼: prefixal bound form of め (me, “eye”)

##### Derived terms

* 前(まえ) (mae)
* 瞬(まじろ)ぐ (majirogu, “to blink, wink”)
* 瞬(またた)く (matataku, “to blink, wink”)
* 睫(まつげ) (matsuge, “eyelash”)
* 眼(まな)間(かい) (manakai, “between one's eyes”)
* 眼(まなこ) (manako, “eyeball”)
* 眼(まな)差(ざ)し (manazashi, “look, gaze”)
* 眦(まなじり) (manajiri, “corner of the eye”)
* まのあたり (manoatari, “just before one's eyes”)
* 瞬(まばた)く (mabataku, “to blink, wink”)
* 目(ま)深(ぶか) (mabuka, “wearing low over one's eyes”)
* 瞼(まぶた) (mabuta), 瞼(まなぶた) (manabuta, “eyelid”)
* 眉(まみえ) (mamie, “eyebrow”)
* 眉(まゆ) (mayu, “eyebrow”)

### Etymology 4

* Alternative spelling
* 真
From Old Japanese. Attested since at least the Kojiki of 712 CE.

#### Pronunciation

(noun):
* (Tokyo) ま [mà] (Heiban – [0])
* IPA: [ma̠]
(prefix):
* IPA: [ma̠]
    (pitch accent depends on the entire prefixed word)

#### Noun

ま • (ma)
* [from 712] 真: the truth, reality, genuineness
    Synonyms: 真実 (shinjitsu), 本当 (hontō)

##### Idioms

* 真(ま)に受(う)ける (ma ni ukeru)

#### Prefix

ま • (ma-)
* [from 720] 真: real, genuine
    真(ま)心(ごころ) ― magokoro ― one's real mind, one's real thoughts and feelings about something
* [from 759] 真: pure, unadulterated
    真(ま)白(しろ) ― mashiro ― pure white
* [from 1595] 真: definitely, certainly, exactly, precisely, directly
    真(ま)上(うえ) ― maue ― directly above
* [date unknown] 真: true, real, main (appended to words for animals or plants to indicate the representative type)
    真(ま)竹(たけ) ― matake ― true bamboo
* [from 759] 真: (archaic, possibly obsolete, honorific) great, excellent
    真(ま)熊(くま)野(の) ― makumano ― great Kumano

##### Derived terms

* 真(ま)赤(あか) (māka), 真(ま)っ赤(か) (makka)
* 真(ま)新(あたら)しい (mātarashī)
* 真(ま)一(いち)文(もん)字(じ) (maichimonji)
* 真(ま)上(うえ) (maue)
* 真(ま)後(うし)ろ (maushiro)
* 真(ま)顔(がお) (magao)
* 真(ま)仮(が)名(な) (magana)
* 真(ま)鴨(がも) (magamo)
* 真(ま)木(き), 槙(まき) (maki)
* 真(ま)北(きた) (makita)
* 真(ま)際(ぎわ) (magiwa)
* 真(ま)っ暗(くら) (makkura)
* 真(ま)っ暗(くら)闇(やみ) (makkurayami)
* 真(ま)黒(くろ) (makuro), 真(ま)っ黒(くろ) (makkuro)
* 真(ま)っ黒(くろ)い (makkuroi)
* 真(ま)桑(くわ)瓜(うり) (makuwauri)
* 真(ま)鯉(ごい) (magoi)
* 真(ま)っ向(こう) (makkō)
* 真(ま)心(ごころ) (magokoro)
* 真(ま)菰(こも) (makomo)
* 真(ま)っ最(さい)中(ちゅう) (massaichū, “in full swing, in the midst”)
* 真(ま)盛(さか)り (masakari), 真(ま)っ盛(さか)り (massakari)
* 真(ま)青(さお) (masao), 真(ま)っ青(さお) (massao)
* 真(ま)逆(さか) (masaka)
* 真(ま)逆様(さかさま) (masakasama), 真(ま)っ逆様(さかさま) (massakasama)
* 真(ま)っ先(さき) (massaki)
* 真(ま)砂(さご) (masago)
* 真(ま)四(し)角(かく) (mashikaku)
* 驀地(まっしぐら) (masshigura)
* 真(ま)下(した) (mashita)
* 真(ま)清水(しみず) (mashimizu)
* 真(ま)正(しょう)直(じき) (mashōjiki), 真(ま)っ正(しょう)直(じき) (masshōjiki)
* 真(ま)正(しょう)面(めん) (mashōmen), 真(ま)っ正(しょう)面(めん) (masshōmen)
* 真(ま)白(しろ) (mashiro), 真(ま)っ白(しろ) (masshiro)
* 真(ま)白(しろ)い (mashiroi), 真(ま)っ白(しろ)い (masshiroi)
* 真(ま)っ直(す)ぐ (massugu)
* 真(ま)鯛(だい) (madai)
* 真(ま)竹(だけ) (madake)
* 真(ま)っ只(ただ)中(なか) (mattadanaka)
* 真(ま)土(つち) (matsuchi)
* 真(ま)艫(とも) (matomo)
* 真(ま)面(とも) (matomo)
* 真(ま)名(な) (mana)
* 真(ま)魚(な) (mana)
* 真(ま)中(なか) (manaka), 真(ま)ん中(なか) (mannaka)
* 真(ま)夏(なつ) (manatsu)
* 真(ま)西(にし) (manishi)
* 真(ま)人(にん)間(げん) (maningen)
* 真(ま)似(ね) (mane)
* 真(ま)似(ね)る (maneru)
* 真(ま)裸(はだか) (mahadaka), 真(ま)っ裸(ぱだか) (mappadaka)
* 真(ま)平(ひら) (mahira), 真(ま)っ平(ぴら) (mappira)
* 真(ま)昼(ひる) (mahiru)
* 真(ま)東(ひがし) (mahigashi)
* 真(ま)昼(ひる) (mahiru)
* 真(ま)二(ふた)つ (mafutatsu)
* 真(ま)冬(ふゆ) (mafuyu)
* 真(ま)帆(ほ) (maho)
* 真(ま)ん前(まえ) (manmae)
* 真(ま)ん丸(まる), 真(ま)ん円(まる) (manmaru)
* 真(ま)ん丸(まる)い, 真(ま)ん円(まる)い (manmarui)
* 真(ま)水(みず) (mamizu)
* 真(ま)南(みなみ) (maminami)
* 真(ま)向(む)かい, 真(ま)向(むか)い (mamukai)
* 真(ま)向(む)き (mamuki)
* 真(ま)物(もの) (mamono)
* 真(ま)夜(よ) (mayo)
* 真(ま)横(よこ) (mayoko)
* 真(ま)夜(よ)中(なか) (mayonaka)
* 真(ま)綿(わた) (mawata)

### Etymology 5

For pronunciation and definitions of ま – see the following entry. :
| 【魔】S | [affix] demon, devil, evil spirit, evil influence |
(This term, ま (ma), is the hiragana spelling of the above term.) For a list of all kanji read as ま, see Category:Japanese kanji read as ま.) :

### References

* 1 2 Matsumura, Akira, editor (2006), 大辞林 [Daijirin] (in Japanese), Third edition, Tokyo: Sanseidō, →ISBN
* 1 2 NHK Broadcasting Culture Research Institute, editor (1998), NHK日本語発音アクセント辞典 [NHK Japanese Pronunciation Accent Dictionary] (in Japanese), Tokyo: NHK Publishing, Inc., →ISBN
* 1 2 Shōgaku Tosho (1988) 国語大辞典（新装版） [Unabridged Dictionary of Japanese (Revised Edition)] (in Japanese), Tōkyō: Shogakukan, →ISBN