🌏 Region(s): Ryukyu (Okinawa)
ない【生い・実】 : nai | define meaning
nai
Pronunciation: /nai/ [nai]
Definition
Noun
- Fruit; berries; nuts; seeds
Etymology
Cognate with Kagoshima ない nai; Okinawan ない nai; Yonaguni ない nai "fruit, berries"; and standard Japanese なり【生り】 nari "bearing fruit". Compare Kagoshima ないもん naimon; Okinawan ないむん naimun; and standard Japanese なりもの【生り物】 narimono "harvest; fruit". Ultimately from the nominal form of the verb なる【生る】 naru "to bear fruit".
Historical Ryukyuan attestations
- Vocabulary of the language spoken at the Great Loo-Choo Island, in the Japan Sea (1818), by Herbert John Clifford, records "Cocoa-nuts. Náee".
Spelling
| Orthography | Form |
|---|---|
| Kanji | 生い 実 |
| Kana | ない |
| Romanization | nai |
| Pronunciation (IPA) | /nai/ [nai] |
意味：み【実・子】、かじつ【果実】
Categories:
生い
Cite this entry: Read, Zachary. (2025, November 30). ない【生い・実】 : nai | define meaning. JLect: Japonic Languages and Dialects Database. Retrieved 2025, December 5, from https://www.jlect.com/entry/285/nai/.