彼女

First appears in writing in the late Edo period as a compound of 彼の (kano, ano, “that”) +‎ 女 (onna, “woman”) with the reading kano onna or ano onna, simply meaning “that woman”.[1] The kanojo reading arose by replacing the kun'yomi reading of onna for the second character with its on'yomi of jo. The first written appearance of the kanojo reading is in 1876, in the 改正画引小学読本 (Kaisei Gakubiki Shōgaku Dokuhon, “Revised Stroke-ordered Elementary-school Reader”).[2] The first clear use of this term as a pronoun is around 1888,[2] arising out of influence from Western works.[1][2][3] The kanojo reading became more common and replaced kano onna and ano onna during the Taishō period (1912-1926).[1]

• (Irregular reading)
  • (Tokyo) か​のじょ [káꜜnòjò] (Atamadaka – [1])[4][2]
  • IPA^(key): [ka̠no̞ʑo̞]

彼女 (hiragana かのじょ, rōmaji kanojo, historical hiragana かのぢよ)

1. (formal) Female third-person singular pronoun; she, her

   彼 (かれ)氏 (し)彼 (かの)女 (じょ)の事 (じ)情 (じょう)

   Kareshi Kanojo no Jijō

   His and Her Circumstances

   • 1988 July 30 [Jul 25 1984], Fujiko F. Fujio, “ふたりぼっち [Altwo]”, in ポストの中の明日 [Post-Mid-Tomorrow] (藤子不二雄少年SF短編集; 2), volume 2 (fiction), 10th edition, Tokyo: Shogakukan, →ISBN, page 191:

     「彼 (かの)女 (じょ)はぼくの『宇 (う)宙 (ちゅう)開 (かい)拓 (たく)史 (し)』に興 (きょう)味 (み)を示 (しめ)した」

     “Kanojo wa boku no ‘Uchū Kaitakushi’ ni kyōmi o shimeshita”

     “She showed interest in my ‘History of Cosmic Reclamation’”

   • Yamazaki, Kore, “第5篇　Misfortunes seldom come singly. [Composition 5: Misfortunes seldom come singly.]”, in 魔法使いの嫁The Ancient Magus Bride [The Ancient Magus’ Bride], volume 1 (fiction), Tokyo: Mag Garden, page 174:

     やはり彼かの女じょが大だい事じな実じっ験けん体たいだからか？裂き喰らう城ピルム・ムーリアリス

     Yahari kanojo ga daiji na jikkentai dakara ka? Pirumu Mūriarisu

     After all, she’s your indispensable specimen, right? Pilum Murialis

   • 2004 February 6, “レオニンのシカール [Leonin Shikari]”, in ダークスティール [Darksteel], Wizards of the Coast:

     彼 (かの)女 (じょ)の本 (ほん)能 (のう)は、その刃 (やいば)ほども鋭 (するど)い。

     Kanojo no honnō wa, sono yaiba hodo mo surudoi.

     Her instinct is as sharp as that blade.

   • 2016 July 22, “エムラクールの加か護ご [Boon of Emrakul]”, in 異界月 [Eldritch Moon], Wizards of the Coast:

     エムラクールの周 (しゅう)囲 (い)では、彼 (かの)女 (じょ)の想 (そう)像 (ぞう)に合 (あ)わせて生 (せい)命 (めい)が形 (かた)を変 (か)える。

     Emurakūru no shūi de wa, kanojo no sōzō ni awasete seimei ga kata o kaeru.

     All around Emrakul, life re-formed in her image.

2. (colloquial, vulgar) Used as a second-person singular pronoun to a unknown young woman by a man, especially in the vocative mood in a vulgar way.

   ヘイ彼女 (かのじょ)、お茶 (ちゃ)しない？

   Hei kanojo, ocha shinai?

   Hey girl, do you wanna cup of tea?

3. (Can we verify⁽⁺⁾ this sense?) (rare, nonstandard) a boat or ship which likened to a woman; she, her (influenced by Western customs of treating a ship as female) [5]
   • 1926, Yoshiki Hayama, 海に生くる人々 [Umi ni Ikuru Hitobito]‎:

     万寿丸 (まんじゅまる)はデッキまで沈 (しず)んだその船体 (せんたい)を、太平洋 (たいへいよう)の怒 (ど)濤 (とう)の中 (なか)へこわごわのぞけて見 (み)た。そして思 (おも)い切 (き)って、乗 (の)り出 (だ)したのであった。彼女 (かのじょ)がその臨月 (りんげつ)のからだで走 (はし)れる限 (かぎ)りの速力 (そくりょく)が、ブリッジからエンジンへ命 (めい)じられた。

     Manjumaru wa dekki made shizunda sono sentai o, Taiheiyō no dotō no naka e kowagowa nozokete mita. soshite omoikitte, noridashita no de atta. kanojo ga sono ringetsu no karada de hashireru kagiri no sokuryoku ga, burijji kara enjin e meijirareta.

     Manjumaru gingerly tried to peek her hull soaked in the water to the deck, into the raging billows of the Pacific Ocean; and she ventured out into them. The speed ​​as fast as she can run by her heavily pregnant body, was ordered from the bridge to the engine.

• 彼 (かれ) (kare, “he”)

彼女 (hiragana かのじょ, katakana カノジョ, rōmaji kanojo, historical hiragana かのぢよ, historical katakana カノヂヨ)

1. (colloquial) a girlfriend (a female partner in a romantic relationship)

   あぁ、彼 (かの)女 (じょ)がほしいなぁ…

   Ā, kanojo ga hoshii nā…

   Man, I wish I had a girlfriend…

   • 2004 September 8, Sorachi, Hideaki, “第だい十六訓くん　考かんがえたら人じん生せいってオッさんになってからの方ほうが長ながいじゃねーか！ 恐こわっ‼ [Lesson 16: Come to Think of It, Life Gets Longer When You’re Old! Spooky‼]”, in 銀ぎん魂たま [Silver Soul], volume 3 (fiction), Tokyo: Shueisha, →ISBN:

     いいだろお前 (まえ)　地 (ち)平 (へい)線 (せん)の向 (む)こう側 (がわ)へ行 (い)ってみたいんだ

     Ii daro omae chiheisen no mukōgawa e itte mitai n da

     Fine, take me to the other side of the horizon then

     てめーは彼 (かの)女 (じょ)かぁぁ‼

     Temē wa kanojo kāa‼

     You ain’t my damn girlfriend awright⁉

   • 2008 July 23, TAGRO, “#05”, in 変ゼミ [Abnormal Physiology Seminar], volume 1 (fiction), Tokyo: Kodansha, →ISBN, page 83:

     これって……コムギさん⁉自分の彼女がやられてるのにその恍惚の表情は……ナニ⁉
     コムギは寝取られＮＴＲフェチなのさ

     Kore tte…… Komugi-san⁉ Jibun no kanojo ga yararete ru no ni sono kōkotsu no hyōjō wa…… nani⁉
     Komugi wa netorare fechi na no sa

     That is…… Komugi-san⁉ His girlfriend’s cheating on him, and yet he has that satisfied look on his face…… What the heck⁉
     Komugi has a cuckold’s fetish

   • 2013 August 7, ONE; Murata, Yusuke, “21撃げき目め　巨きょ大だい隕いん石せき [21st Hit: Giant Meteorite]”, in ONEPUNCH-MAN【ワンパンマン】 [ONE-PUNCH MAN], volume 4 (fiction), Tokyo: Shueisha, →ISBN, page 25:

     死 (し)ぬ前 (まえ)に彼 (かの)女 (じょ)欲 (ほ)しかったなあ…………

     Shinu mae ni kanojo hoshikatta nā…………

     I wish I had a girlfriend before I die…………

• This is an example of a word that can be spelled with katakana to convey an informal conversational tone, as カノジョ.

• 元 (もと)カノ (motokano, “ex-girlfriend”)

• ガールフレンド (gārufurendo, “girlfriend”, borrowed from English)

• 恋人 (こいびと) (koibito, “lover”)
• 交際相手 (こうさいあいて) (kōsai aite, “person one has a relationship with”)

• 彼 (かれ) (kare, “boyfriend”)
• 彼 (かれ)氏 (し) (kareshi, “boyfriend”)