まとも

ま

と

も

Common wordJLPTN1Freq.FrequencyTop 5,000

Meanings

noun, na-adjective

the front; directly; head-on

usually written using kana alone

Used adverbially as まともに to mean 'directly', 'head-on', or 'straight'. The noun use is less common.

Written forms

まともUsage98%
Standard kana spelling; the word is usually written in kana.
マトモUsage2%
正面まとも
rarely-used kanji form
Rare kanji form; can be confused with 正面 (しょうめん).
真面まとも
rarely-used kanji form
Rare kanji form.
真ま正と面も
rarely-used kanji form
Rare kanji form.

Kanji

正correct, justice, righteous
面mask, face, features
真true, reality, Buddhist sect

Similar words

まともに
Adverbial form of まとも, used for 'directly', 'properly', or 'seriously'.
正しょう面めん
Means 'front' or 'facade', often used for physical orientation. まとも is more about facing something directly or being upright.

Etymology

Derived from 真 (ま, 'true') + 面 (とも, 'face/direction'), originally meaning 'directly facing'. The figurative sense of 'honest/upright' developed from the idea of being straightforward.

まとも

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