汚れ（よごれ、yogore）
- dirt

The Japanese word 汚れ (よごれ) primarily means "dirt," "stain," or "blemish." It refers to something that is unclean, impure, or marred in some way. It can apply to physical objects, metaphorical situations, or even abstract concepts like a "dirty deed." It signifies a state of being soiled or defiled. It can also refer to the act of getting dirty itself, such as during a process. The meaning varies depending on the context, but the core idea of something being compromised in its cleanliness or purity remains consistent. The noun 汚れ often implies something visible and noticeable.

⚫︎ 服に[汚れ]がついた。 Translation: There's a stain on the clothes. ⚫︎ 部屋の[汚れ]を掃除する。 Translation: To clean the dirt in the room. ⚫︎ 心の[汚れ]を払う。 Translation: To cleanse one's heart of impurities.

⚫︎ Use 汚れ when describing physical dirt, stains, or blemishes on objects, surfaces, or clothing. ⚫︎ It can also be used metaphorically to describe moral impurity, corruption, or something that is ethically compromised. ⚫︎ When speaking about the act of getting dirty, it can refer to the process or the state of being dirty, such as when playing outside. ⚫︎ The usage will be different based on the context, but it is a relatively common word, and can be used in both formal and informal situations.

⚫︎ The word is typically written as 汚れ (hiragana: よごれ, kanji: 汚（よご）れ). ⚫︎ The kanji 汚 means "to pollute," "to contaminate," or "dirty." ⚫︎ The okurigana (hiragana attached to the kanji) is れ. ⚫︎ The verb form of 汚れ is 汚れる（よごれる） meaning "to get dirty," or "to become stained." The stem of the verb, used to create different verb conjugations, is 汚（よご）れ. ⚫︎ The adjective form related to 汚れ is 汚い（きたない） meaning "dirty."

⚫︎ シミ (shimi): Stain ⚫︎ 泥 (doro): Mud, dirt ⚫︎ ゴミ (gomi): Trash, garbage ⚫︎ 不潔 (fuketsu): Uncleanliness, unsanitary ⚫︎ 汚染 (osen): Pollution

⚫︎ 綺麗 (kirei): Clean, beautiful ⚫︎ 清潔 (seiketsu): Clean, hygienic ⚫︎ 純粋 (junsui): Pure

白いシャツに[汚れ]がついてしまった。 ・Translation: A stain got on the white shirt. ・Explanation: This sentence uses 汚れ to describe a stain on clothing.

戦争は人々の心に深い[汚れ]を残した。 ・Translation: War left deep scars on people's hearts. ・Explanation: This sentence uses 汚れ metaphorically to describe the lasting impact of war.

The kanji 汚（よご） combines the water radical on the left side, indicating something related to water, and the phonetic component on the right. The word itself, 汚れ， is derived from the verb 汚（よご）れる(よごれる) and then modified to the noun form by removing the "ru" sound to represent 汚れ.