sci.lang.japan FAQ / 1. Writing / 1.2. Kanji (漢字)

1.2.8. Can a word have mixed on and kun readings?

In Japanese, words often have readings which are made by combining an on'yomi, or Sino-Japanese reading, and a kun'yomi, or native Japanese reading (see 6.7. What is Yamato kotoba?). These kinds of readings are named after examples of the words themselves:
yutou yomi (湯桶読み)

Image: http://www.sljfaq.org/../images/yutou.jpg
A "yutou".
In the word yutou (湯桶), "hot water bucket", the yu reading of 湯 is a kun'yomi, but the tou reading of 桶 is an on'yomi.

juubako yomi (重箱読み)
In the word juubako (重箱), "nested boxes", the juu reading of 重 is a kun'yomi, but the bako (from hako) reading of 箱 is an on'yomi


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