1.
modified word; head word (the word that a modifier modifies)
A linguistic term referring to the word that receives modification from another word (the modifier). In the phrase "red apple," "apple" is the modified word and "red" is the modifier. Used in grammar textbooks, linguistics papers, and Japanese-language teaching.
In this sentence, "book" is the modified word and "red" is the modifier.
Composed of the passive prefix 被 (receiving; undergoing), 修飾 (modification; qualification), and 語 (word). Literally "the word that receives modification" — the prefix 被 marks the receiving side, just as in 被害者 (victim) and 被告 (defendant).
Usage
A grammar term. You will see it in Japanese-language textbooks, school grammar lessons, linguistic papers, and Japanese-as-a-foreign-language teaching materials. It is almost always paired with 修飾語 (modifier). In Japanese, the 被修飾語 always comes AFTER its modifier, even when the modifier is a whole clause (昨日買った本 'the book I bought yesterday'); English puts adjectives before the noun but relative clauses after it.
Common collocations
- 修飾語と被修飾語: modifier and modified word
- 被修飾語を修飾する: to modify the head word
- 被修飾語の関係: the modifier-head relationship
Similar words
- 修飾語: modifier — the counterpart; the word doing the modifying
- 主語: subject — a different grammatical role; not about modification
- 連体修飾語: nominal modifier — a more specific term for a modifier that attaches to a noun
- 係る・受ける: to modify / to be modified (as verbs) — describes the same relationship in action