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えこひいき Japanese meaning | Kotomora
Meanings 1
noun, noun or participle which takes 'suru', transitive verb
favoritism ; partiality ; bias
usually written using kana alone yojijukugo (four-character idiom)
Refers to unfair preferential treatment, especially in personal relationships or evaluations. Often used in contexts like parenting, teaching, or workplace decisions.
する
の
は
よく
ない
。
It's not good for a teacher to show favoritism toward only certain students.
Written forms 依怙贔屓えこひいき
Full kanji form; very rare in modern writing.
えこ 贔屓ひいき
Mixed kana-kanji form; occasionally seen.
Kanji 依 reliant, depend on, consequently Similar words 偏へん 見けん 偏見 is a general prejudice or bias against a group or idea, while えこひいき is personal favoritism toward specific individuals.
差さ 別べつ 差別 is discrimination, often systematic or social; えこひいき is more about personal, often informal, preferential treatment.
Etymology A yojijukugo combining 依怙 (reliance, partiality) and 贔屓 (favor, patronage). The exact historical derivation is uncertain, but the compound has long been used to mean unfair favoritism.