Kanji 嗚: weep, ah, alas

Key takeaways

Kanji 嗚: weep, ah, alas. Readings and core meaning.

See vocabulary and examples below.

Kanji at a glance

嗚

Meaning

weepahalas

On reading

うお

Kun reading

ああ

Radical

口

Core meaning: 嗚

weep, ah, alas

嗚

Structure breakdown

口 + 烏

Imagine someone opening their mouth (口) to cry out like a crow (烏). This character represents the sound of a deep sigh or lamenting 'alas' in grief.

ああ

Example 1

嗚呼、もう遅刻だ。

Translation

Ah, I’m already late.

Example 2

嗚呼、夢がかなわなかった。

Translation

Alas, my dream didn’t come true.