noun
General word for how something or someone looks, often used in phrases like 相が変わる or 相を見る.
彼は疲れた相で帰ってきた。
He came back looking tired.
この町もずいぶん相が変わった。
This town has really changed its appearance.
noun
physiognomy; fortune-telling by facial features
Traditional practice of reading a person's fortune or character from their facial features; often used in contexts like 相を見る or 人相.
占い師は彼の相を見て、将来を予言した。
The fortune-teller read his physiognomy and predicted his future.
noun
grammatical aspect
Linguistic term for the temporal flow of an action (e.g., perfective, progressive).
日本語の「～ている」は継続相を表す。
Japanese ～ている expresses the progressive aspect.
noun
Scientific term for distinct states of matter such as solid, liquid, gas, or plasma.
水は温度によって液相、固相、気相に変化する。
Water changes into liquid phase, solid phase, and gaseous phase depending on temperature.
Specifically refers to facial features or physiognomy, while 相 alone is broader and can refer to appearance in general or other technical senses.
Means 'aspect' or 'phase' in a more formal or abstract sense, often used in written language, whereas 相 is more common in everyday speech for appearance.
The kanji 相 originally depicts an eye (目) observing a tree (木), suggesting 'to look at, observe', which extended to 'appearance, aspect'. The reading そう is the on'yomi.