How to say 'Old' in Japanese | 古

Wondering how to say 'Old' in Japanese? You're in the right place!

The Japanese word for Old is 'Ko', written as 古 in Japanese.'Old' in hiragana is こ.

word

古

Meaning

Old

Reading

こ

Kanji

古Old

Explanation

The Japanese prefix '古 (こ)' means 'old' and is used to indicate something ancient, traditional, or from the past. It often carries a sense of historical significance or antiquity. This prefix is commonly used in compound words to describe things like old buildings, traditions, or artifacts. For example: ancient capital「古都」(こと). old book「古本」(ふるほん). Note that while '古' can also be read as 'ふる' in some contexts, as a prefix it is typically read as 'こ'. The reading and meaning depend on the compound word it is part of.

Part Of Speech

prefix

Kanji JLPT

Kanji Grade

Frequency

3925

Composition

kanji

Handwriting

Kanji in the Word 古

This word contains 1 kanji character:

kanji

古

Meaning

Old

Words Related to 古 Through the Kanji 古

These 9 Words contain the Kanji 古 as well.

word

古い

Meaning

Old

word

古代

Meaning

Ancient, Antiquity

word

古典

Meaning

Classic

word

古墳

Meaning

Tumulus

word

稽古

Meaning

Practice

word

古く

Meaning

Old

word

中古

Meaning

Used, Secondhand

word

古本

Meaning

Used book

word

古里

Meaning

Hometown

Learn the Word 古

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What does 'Ko' (古) mean?

'Ko' means 'Old' .

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