右
みぎ
hepburn migi
right (direction)
Part of speech · noun
Pattern visualization
Examples
- 右に曲がってください。Please turn right.
- 右手で書きます。I write with my right hand.
Collocations
右 (migi, right)右手 (migite, right hand)右側 (migigawa, right side)右に曲がる (migi ni magaru, turn right)右翼 (uyoku, right-wing)
Mnemonic
右 migi — onyomi う (u) / ゆう (yuu): 右翼 (uyoku, right-wing politics), 左右 (sayuu, left and right). The oracle-bone form of 右 shows a right hand → 又 (originally a hand pictograph) + 口 (mouth) — "right hand pointing to the mouth", capturing actions of eating/speaking. The hand sense extended to direction. Driving in Japan is left-side (opposite to Korea, US), so the driver sits on the right — a daily embodiment of left/right that helps the kanji stick.
Quick check
In the etymology of 右, what does 又 represent?