1.
the area around the eyes; the part of the face surrounding the eyes, including the eyelids, lashes, and skin near the corners of the eyes
Refers to the region of the face surrounding the eyes, rather than the eyeballs themselves. This is a useful word in beauty and skincare contexts (eye creams, makeup), in descriptions of facial features and expressions, and in everyday talk about tired eyes or wrinkles. It often carries an implicit sense of how someone looks, since the area around the eyes is one of the most expressive and noticeable parts of the face.
目元が涼しい。
She has refreshing-looking eyes.
母に目元がそっくりだ。
My eyes look exactly like my mother's.
疲れているのか、目元にクマができている。
He must be tired — he has dark circles under his eyes.
年齢が出やすい目元を、専用のクリームで丁寧にケアしている。
I take careful care of the area around my eyes — where age tends to show — using a special cream.
Composed of 目 ('eye') + 元 ('the base or area around something'). The suffix 元 creates a series of words referring to areas around facial features: 目元 'around the eyes', 口元 'around the mouth', 耳元 'right next to the ear', 足元 'around the feet, underfoot'.
USAGE:
Unlike 目 (which usually refers to the eyeball or the sense of sight), 目元 refers to the visual area around the eyes — the eyelids, lashes, eye corners, and surrounding skin. This makes it especially useful in three contexts:
- describing physical features and resemblance (e.g. saying that someone has eyes like their parent's)
- talking about facial expressions and impressions (目元 can look gentle, sharp, sleepy, etc.)
- skincare and makeup, where the eye area is treated as a distinct zone
COMMON COLLOCATIONS:
- 目元が涼しい: to have clear, attractive eyes (lit. 'cool eyes')
- 目元が優しい: to have gentle-looking eyes
- 目元が鋭い: to have sharp, piercing eyes
- 目元が似ている: the eye area resembles (someone)
- 目元にクマができる: to get dark circles around the eyes
- 目元のしわ: wrinkles around the eyes
- 目元のメイク: eye makeup
- 目元のケア: eye-area skincare
- 目元専用クリーム: eye cream
SIMILAR WORDS:
- 目: eye, eyes; sight — the general word; refers primarily to the eyeball or the sense of vision.
- 目差し: gaze, look — focuses on the way someone looks at something, the expression in their eyes.
- 目付き: look in one's eyes, expression of the eyes — emphasizes how the eyes appear (kindly, sharply, suspiciously, etc.).
- 瞼: eyelid — refers specifically to the lid that covers the eye.
- 口元: area around the mouth — parallel construction; useful for describing mouth shape and expression.
REGISTER:
Neutral; common in everyday speech as well as in beauty advertising, cosmetic product descriptions, and literary descriptions of characters' faces.