馬
うま
hepburn uma
horse
Part of speech · noun
Pattern visualization
Examples
- 馬に乗りたいです。I want to ride a horse.
- 彼の絵は馬が上手です。He's good at drawing horses.
Collocations
馬 (uma, horse)競馬 (keiba, horse racing)木馬 (mokuba, wooden horse)馬力 (bariki, horsepower)馬鹿 (baka, fool — "horse-deer")
Mnemonic
馬 uma — onyomi ば (ba) / め (me): 競馬 (keiba, horse racing), 馬車 (basha, carriage), 乗馬 (jouba, horseback riding). Trap entry: 馬鹿 (baka) = "horse + deer" = the most common Japanese insult "fool". Multiple etymologies: a foolish minister insisting a deer was a horse (Chinese parable), Sanskrit moha (delusion), or simply "can't tell horse from deer". Korean and Chinese don't use 馬鹿; Japan-only. Two animal kanji combined branch into character judgment. 馬力 (bariki) = horsepower, a direct translation of the English.
Quick check
Most likely etymology of 馬鹿 (baka)?