Good morning !
Do you know contents “Umamusume"?
While it's
usually written in katakana and kanji, if we were to write it in all kanji, it would look like this: 馬娘.
The first character is 馬 "uma" / "horse," and the second ,娘 "musume" / “daughter" or "young woman."
We will focus on the kanji 馬 .This character is actually a stylized drawing of a horse.
In Japan, 競馬 "keiba" / "horse racing" is popular, and there are many words related to horses used in it.
But these words are used in specific situations, so I won't introduce.
Let's look at some common words that use the kanji 馬:
馬鹿 "baka"
This is an insult meaning "stupid" or “idiot.”
The first character is 馬 "ba" / "horse," and the second is 鹿 "ka" or "shika" / "deer."
It's a harsh word, so be careful when using it!
出馬 "shutsuba"
Again, the second character is 馬 and the first is 出 "shuts” or “de(ru)", meaning "to exit" or "to appear."So, 出馬 originally meant "to go to the battlefield riding a warhorse." Nowadays, it's used when someone announces their candidacy in an election. It means "to run for office."
The horse is included the twelve animals of the Chinese zodiac (十二支 "juunishi"). However, a different kanji is used for that:
午 "uma"
In the past, each day was divided into twelve segments, each represented by one of the zodiac animals.
Noon (12:00 PM) was associated with 午 "go."
While the other zodiac representations are rarely used to tell time anymore, 午 "uma" remains in a few common phrases.
We still use 午 “go” to describe the time of day:
午前 "gozen": "AM" or "before noon." It literally means "before 午 (go)."
正午 "shougo": "Noon" or "12:00 PM."
午後 "gogo" : "PM" or "after noon." It literally means "after 午 (go)."
That's all for today.
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