一輪(いちりん)

いちりん
noun
a single flower; one wheel
1. a single flower; one bloom
One flower or blossom, typically used in literary or aesthetic contexts. Evokes an image of a solitary, beautiful flower.
庭(にわ)にバラ(ばら)が一輪(いちりん)咲(さ)いていた。
A single rose was blooming in the garden.
一輪(いちりん)の花(はな)を花瓶(かびん)に飾(かざ)った。
I placed a single flower in a vase.
雪(ゆき)の中(なか)にたった一輪(いちりん)だけ梅(うめ)が咲(さ)いている姿(すがた)が印象的(いんしょうてき)だった。
The sight of just one plum blossom blooming in the snow was striking.
2. one wheel; single wheel
A single wheel. Most commonly seen in the compound 一輪車(いちりんしゃ) (unicycle; wheelbarrow).
子(こ)どもが一輪車(いちりんしゃ)に乗(の)る練習(れんしゅう)をしている。
The child is practicing riding a unicycle.
一輪車(いちりんしゃ)で土(つち)を運(はこ)ぶ。
I carry soil with a wheelbarrow.
工事(こうじ)現場(げんば)では一輪車(いちりんしゃ)が欠(か)かせない道具(どうぐ)だ。
A wheelbarrow is an indispensable tool at construction sites.

Compound of 一(いち) ('one') and 輪(りん) ('wheel; ring; flower counter'). The kanji 輪(りん) functions as a counter for flowers, giving sense 1 its meaning of 'a single flower.' In sense 2, 輪(りん) means 'wheel.'

USAGE:

  • Sense 1 is common in literary contexts, poetry, and descriptions of natural beauty
  • 一輪(いちりん)の花(はな) is a poetic set phrase often symbolizing resilience, beauty in solitude, or fleeting nature
  • Sense 2 appears primarily in the compound 一輪車(いちりんしゃ), which means both 'unicycle' and 'wheelbarrow'

COMMON COLLOCATIONS:

  • 一輪(いちりん)の花(はな): a single flower
  • 一輪(いちりん)咲(さ)く: one bloom opens
  • 一輪車(いちりんしゃ): unicycle; wheelbarrow
  • 一輪挿(いちりんざ)し: single-flower vase

SIMILAR WORDS:

  • 一本(いっぽん): one (long object) — used for counting stems, sticks; 花(はな)一本(いっぽん) counts the stem rather than the bloom
  • 一束(ひとたば): one bunch — a bunch or bouquet of flowers
  • 二輪(にりん): two wheels; two flowers — follows the same pattern, also used in 二輪車(にりんしゃ) (motorcycle)
general
Added 2026.4.18 21:26
24000/24283_ichirin