申し申し

Japanese

Kanji in this term
もう
Grade: 3
もう
Grade: 3
kun’yomi

Etymology

/mauɕi mauɕi//moːɕi moːɕi/

Reduplication of 申し (mōshi), the 連用形 (ren'yōkei, continuative or stem form) of verb 申す (mōsu, to speak, humble form).[1][2][3] Mōshi mōshi literally means "speaking speaking", and was used in the first telephone experiment in Japan, quite similar to the English “checking, checking” or “testing, testing” used when testing audio equipment. In modern parlance, it is used more like English “hello”, only just on the telephone, or figuratively when trying to get through to someone.

Pronunciation

Interjection

申し申し (hiragana もうしもうし, rōmaji mōshi mōshi, historical hiragana まうしまうし)

  1. (telephony) A common Japanese telephone greeting: hello; used when answering the telephone.
  2. Used to confirm that the person being addressed is listening, or to confirm if anyone is listening.

Alternative forms

References

  1. 1988, 国語大辞典(新装版) (Kokugo Dai Jiten, Revised Edition) (in Japanese), Tōkyō: Shogakukan
  2. 2006, 大辞林 (Daijirin), Third Edition (in Japanese), Tōkyō: Sanseidō, →ISBN
  3. 1997, 新明解国語辞典 (Shin Meikai Kokugo Jiten), Fifth Edition (in Japanese), Tōkyō: Sanseidō, →ISBN
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