斧(おの)

おの

noun

axe, hatchet

tool

1. axe, hatchet

A tool with a heavy blade attached to a handle, used for chopping wood. Also appears in folktales and idioms.

斧(おの)で薪(まき)を割(わ)った。

I split firewood with an axe.

木(き)こりは斧(おの)をかついで山(やま)に入(はい)った。

The woodcutter shouldered his axe and went into the mountains.

金(きん)の斧(おの)と銀(ぎん)の斧(おの)の話(はなし)は、正直(しょうじき)の大切(たいせつ)さを教(おし)えてくれる。

The story of the golden axe and the silver axe teaches us the importance of honesty.

Usage

斧(おの) is the standard word for an axe. It appears in the well-known folktale 金(きん)の斧(おの)銀(ぎん)の斧(おの) (The Golden Axe and the Silver Axe), a Japanese adaptation of Aesop's fable about the honest woodcutter.

Common collocations

斧(おの)を振(ふ)る: to swing an axe
斧(おの)で割(わ)る: to chop with an axe
斧(おの)を研(と)ぐ: to sharpen an axe

Counter: 本(ほん) (for the tool), 丁(ちょう) (traditional)

general

Added 2026.2.22 15:25 · Revised 2026.9.2 13:01

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