自ら

Japanese

Etymology 1
Kanji in this term
自
みずか
Grade: 2
kun’yomi

⟨mi2 tu kara⟩ → */mʷɨdukara/ → /mid͡zukara/ → /mizukara/

Originally a compound of 身 (mi, “body”) +‎ つ (tsu, Old Japanese possessive particle) +‎ 柄 (kara, “quality, characteristic → by itself”).[1][2]

The okurigana ら (ra) is used to indicate the reading.

Alternative forms
  • (rare) 躬ら, 親ら

Pronunciation

Adverb

自ら (hiragana みずから, rōmaji mizukara, historical hiragana みづから)

  1. personally, by or for oneself
    Synonyms: 自分自身で (jibun-jishin de), 身自ら (mimizukara)
Derived terms
  • 手 (て)自 (みずか)ら (temizukara)
  • 身 (み)自 (みずか)ら, 躬 (み)自 (みずか)ら (mimizukara)
Idioms
  • 自 (みずか)ら持 (じ)する (mizukara ji suru)
  • 自 (みずか)らを持 (じ)する (mizukara o ji suru)
Proverbs
Proverbs
  • 自 (みずか)ら直 (なお)きの箭 (や)を恃 (たの)まば百世 (ひゃくせい)矢 (や)無 (な)からん (mizukara naoki no ya o tanomaba hyakusei ya nakaran)
  • 自 (みずか)ら卑 (ひく)うすれば尚 (たっと)し (mizukara hikuu sureba tattoshi)
  • 自 (みずか)ら墓穴 (ぼけつ)を掘 (ほ)る (mizukara boketsu o horu)
  • 薫 (くん)は香 (こう)を以 (もっ)て自 (みずか)ら焼 (や)く (kun wa kō o motte mizukara yaku)
  • 剛 (ごう)戻 (れい)自 (みずか)ら用 (もち)う (gōrei mizukara mochiu)
  • 天 (てん)の作 (な)せる孽 (わざわい)は猶違 (なおさ)くべし、自 (みずか)ら作 (な)せる孽 (わざわい)は逭 (のが)るべからず (ten no naseru wazawai wa naosakubeshi, mizukara naseru wazawai wa nogarubekarazu)
  • 天 (てん)は自 (みずか)ら助 (たす)くる者 (もの)を助 (たす)く (ten wa mizukara tasukuru mono o tasuku)
  • 虎 (とら)を養 (やしな)いて自 (みずか)ら患 (うれ)いを遺 (のこ)す (tora o yashinaite mizukara urei o nokosu)
  • 汝 (なんじ)自 (みずか)らを知 (し)れ (nanji mizukara o shire)
  • 人 (ひと)必 (かなら)ず自 (みずか)ら侮 (あなど)りて然 (しか)る後 (のち)に人 (ひと)これを侮 (あなど)る (hito kanarazu mizukara anadorite shikaru nochi ni hito kore o anadoru)
  • 人 (ひと)に勝 (か)たんと欲 (ほっ)する者 (もの)は必 (かなら)ず先 (ま)ず自 (みずか)ら勝 (か)つ (hito ni katan to hossuru mono wa kanarazu mazu mizukara katsu)

Noun

自ら (hiragana みずから, rōmaji mizukara, historical hiragana みづから)

  1. oneself
    Synonyms: 自分 (jibun), 自分自身 (jibun-jishin)

Pronoun

自ら (hiragana みずから, rōmaji mizukara, historical hiragana みづから)

  1. (obsolete) first-person pronoun: I, me
    Synonym: 私 (watakushi)

Etymology 2
Kanji in this term
自
おのずか
Grade: 2
kun’yomi

Adverb

自ら (hiragana おのずから, rōmaji onozukara, historical hiragana おのづから)

  1. Alternative spelling of 自ずから (onozukara): by itself, naturally, on its own

References
  1. 1988, 国語大辞典（新装版） (Kokugo Dai Jiten, Revised Edition) (in Japanese), Tōkyō: Shogakukan
  2. 2006, 大辞林 (Daijirin), Third Edition (in Japanese), Tōkyō: Sanseidō, →ISBN
  3. 1974, 新明解国語辞典 (Shin Meikai Kokugo Jiten), Second Edition (in Japanese), Tōkyō: Sanseidō
  4. Hirayama, Tetsuo (1960) 全国アクセント辞典 (Nationwide Accent Dictionary) (in Japanese), Tōkyō: 東京堂,.
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