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日本鬼子

Mandarin · pinyin Rì běn guǐ zi

Japanese devil (common term of abuse in wartime China and in subsequent writing)

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Characters in this entry

日: rì · sun; day; daytime
本: běn · root, origin, source; basis
鬼: guǐ · ghost; spirit of dead; devil; Kangxi radical 194; 23rd lunar mansion, determinative star θ Cancri
子: zǐ · offspring, child; fruit, seed of; first earthly branch

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Mandarin tones

4–3–3–5 · Ri4 ben3 gui3 zi5

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Wiktionary English definitions · Chinese section

Independent source senses for this spelling, with usage labels retained. Not matched to the pronunciation above.

noun

(slang, derogatory, ethnic slur) a Japanese (person), Jap (common term of abuse in wartime China and in subsequent writing)

Source page · dump 2026-09-02 · Contributors & history

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