わよ

expression, particle

you know; I tell you (feminine emphasis)

informalcolloquialgrammatical

1. you know; I tell you (feminine sentence-final emphasis)

A sentence-final combination of わ and よ used in feminine speech to assert something to the listener. It is softer and warmer than plain よ, and often carries a note of reassurance or mild insistence.

大丈夫(だいじょうぶ)よ、心配(しんぱい)ないわよ。

It's fine, there's nothing to worry about.

そんなこと、私(わたし)は知(し)らないわよ。

I don't know anything about that, I tell you.

早(はや)く行(い)かないと、電車(でんしゃ)に間(ま)に合(あ)わないわよ。

If you don't hurry, you won't make the train, you know.

Attaches to the plain form of verbs and i-adjectives, and to nouns and na-adjectives through だ (静(しず)かだわよ). Without だ the わ drops as well, leaving plain よ (静(しず)かよ).

Register

Strongly marked as feminine speech. It is common in fiction, drama, and translated dialogue, and in the speech of older women, but younger speakers today more often use plain よ or the softer のよ. Learners should recognize it rather than adopt it unless the feminine register is intended.

Similar words

よ: emphasis — neutral, used by any speaker
のよ: explanatory emphasis — feminine, but adds "the reason is" nuance
わね: feminine agreement-seeking — invites the listener to agree instead of asserting

Related Words

Related: よ (neutral emphasis particle)

Compare: ぜ (masculine counterpart)

Compare: のよ (explanatory emphasis)

general

Added 2026.7.30 21:18 · Revised 2026.10.13 15:22

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