1.
change; shifting; transition; passing
The gradual changing or passing of something, especially seasons, time, feelings, or beauty. Carries a poetic, often melancholic tone.
季節の移ろい。
The changing of the seasons.
時の移ろいを感じる。
To feel the passing of time.
花の色の移ろいに、人生のはかなさを重ねる。
One sees the transience of life in the changing colors of flowers.
心の移ろいを繊細に描いた小説だ。
It is a novel that delicately portrays the shifting of emotions.
A literary and poetic noun derived from the verb 移ろう (to change, to shift). Evokes the Japanese aesthetic sense of impermanence (無常), appreciating beauty precisely because it is fleeting. Common in literature, essays, and poetic description.
COMMON COLLOCATIONS:
- 季節の移ろい: the changing of seasons
- 時の移ろい: the passage of time
- 心の移ろい: shifting emotions
- 色の移ろい: the shifting of colors
CULTURAL NOTE:
Deeply connected to the Japanese aesthetic of 無常 (impermanence) and the appreciation of transient beauty (もののあわれ}). The concept appears frequently in classical literature, including {百人一首 poetry.
SIMILAR WORDS:
- 変化: change (neutral, general-purpose)
- 推移: transition, shift (formal, often for data or trends)
- 流れ: flow, passage (less poetic than 移ろい)