🌏 Region(s): Ryukyu (Okinawa)
みみ【耳】 : mimi | define meaning
mimi
Pronunciation: [mimi]
Definition
Noun
- Ear
Etymology
Cognate with Kagoshima みん min; Okinawan みみ mimi; and standard Japanese みみ【耳】 mimi "ear".
Historical Ryukyuan attestations
- A Voyage of Discovery to the North Pacific Ocean, 1795-1798 (1804), by William Robert Broughton, records "Meemee, The ear".
- Vocabulary of the language spoken at the Great Loo-Choo island, in the Japan Sea (1818), by Herbert John Clifford, records "Ear. Mímmee", "Ear, left. Feéjeeree noo mímmee", "Ear, right. Meéjeree noo mímmee", "Ears, to pull the. Mímmee feéoong, or feétchoong" and "Deaf (literally, ear not to hear). Mímmee chee karung".
- Essay in Aid of a Grammar and Dictionary of the Luchuan Language (1895), by Basil Hall Chamberlain, records "Mimi, the ear. (Jap. mimi.)".
Spelling
| Orthography | Form |
|---|---|
| Kanji | 耳 |
| Kana | みみ |
| Romanization | mimi |
| Pronunciation (IPA) | [mimi] |
意味：みみ【耳】
Categories:
耳
Cite this entry: Read, Zachary. (2025, December 25). みみ【耳】 : mimi | define meaning. JLect: Japonic Languages and Dialects Database. Retrieved 2026, February 5, from https://www.jlect.com/entry/4789/mimi/.