(そら)

そら
noun
sky, air
1. sky
The region of the atmosphere above the earth.
(そら)(あお)い。
The sky is blue.
(そら)見上(みあ)げる。
To look up at the sky.
今日(きょう)(そら)がきれいだ。
The sky is beautiful today.
(よる)(そら)(ほし)()える。
Stars are visible in the night sky.
(あめ)()んで(そら)(あか)るくなってきた。
The rain stopped and the sky brightened up.

(そら) means sky—the visible expanse above the earth.

KANJI READINGS:

The kanji (くう) has multiple readings with different meanings:

  • (そら): sky (native Japanese reading)
  • (から): empty (e.g., (から)っぽ = empty)
  • (くう): void, emptiness (Sino-Japanese, Buddhist)

COMMON COMPOUNDS:

  • 青空(あおぞら): blue sky
  • 夜空(よぞら): night sky
  • 大空(おおぞら): the great sky, heavens
  • 空模様(そらもよう): sky conditions, weather
  • 空港(くうこう): airport
  • 空気(くうき): air, atmosphere
  • 空中(くうちゅう): in the air, midair

COMMON EXPRESSIONS:

  • (そら)見上(みあ)げる: to look up at the sky
  • (そら)(くも)る: the sky becomes cloudy
  • (そら)()れる: the sky clears up

RELATED WORDS:

  • (てん): heaven, sky (more literary)
  • (くも): cloud
  • (ほし): star