26
弟
Younger Brother
おとうと (otouto)
JLPT N4
Interesting Fact
In several regional folktales, two brothers receive magical gifts. The older brother often acts greedy and loses everything, while the younger brother succeeds through kindness or common sense. The lesson appears so often that "kind younger brother, foolish older brother" became a recurring character type in Japanese storytelling.
Memory Trick
Your younger brother puts on a helmet and grabs a toy sword, pretending to be a great warrior. The shape becomes 弟.
Readings
Onyomi: テイ (tei), ダイ (dai)
Kunyomi: おとうと (otouto)
Example Words
弟
おとうと (otouto)
Younger brother
兄弟
きょうだい (kyoudai)
Brothers, siblings
弟子
でし (deshi)
Disciple, apprentice
義弟
ぎてい (gitei)
Younger brother-in-law
Example Sentence
弟は高校生です。
おとうと は こうこうせい です。
otouto wa koukousei desu
My younger brother is a high school student.