からす

Japanese

Etymology 1

Alternative spellings
烏 鴉

からす (karasu): a crow, a raven.

From Old Japanese, from Proto-Japonic *karasu.

Compound of から (kara, “caw”, onomatopoeia, imitative of a crow's caw) +‎ す (su, “bird”, ancient suffix appearing in certain bird names). Compare the す (su) in 鶯 (uguisu), 杜鵑 (hototogisu), モズ (mozu).

Pronunciation

• (Tokyo) からす [káꜜràsù] (Atamadaka – [1])
• IPA^(key): [ka̠ɾa̠sɨ]

Noun

からす or カラス • (karasu) 

1. a crow or raven

   Synonym: 慈鳥 (jichō)

Usage notes

Commonly spelled 烏 in kanji. When this spelling is used on its own (as opposed to in compounds), karasu is the most common reading.

As with many terms that name organisms, this term is often spelled in katakana, especially in biological contexts (where katakana is customary), as カラス.

Derived terms

Derived terms

• 烏(からす)が鵜(う)の真似(まね) (karasu ga u no mane)
• 烏(からす)座(ざ) (Karasuza): the Corvus constellation
• 烏(からす)の行(ぎょう)水(ずい) (karasu no gyōzui): a quick bath
• 濡(ぬれ)烏(がらす) (nuregarasu): jet-black
• 八(や)咫(た)烏(がらす) (yatagarasu): three legged crow in Japanese mythology
• 渡(わたり)烏(がらす) (watarigarasu): common raven

Etymology 2

Alternative spellings
涸らす 枯らす 嗄らす

Verb

からす • (karasu) transitive godan (stem からし (karashi), past からした (karashita))

Japanese verb pair
active	からす
mediopassive	かれる

1. 涸らす: to drain
2. 涸らす: (figuratively) to exhaust (money etc.)
3. 枯らす:to wither (a plant); to kill (a plant)

   丹(たん)精(せい)した植(うえ)木(き)を枯(か)らす

   tansei shita ueki o karasu

   to kill a carefully cultivated plant

4. 枯らす: to let dry
5. 枯らす, 嗄らす: to yell oneself hoarse

Conjugation

Conjugation of "からす" (See Appendix:Japanese verbs.)

Katsuyōkei ("stem forms")
Mizenkei ("imperfective")	からさ	karasa
Ren’yōkei ("continuative")	からし	karashi
Shūshikei ("terminal")	からす	karasu
Rentaikei ("attributive")	からす	karasu
Kateikei ("hypothetical")	からせ	karase
Meireikei ("imperative")	からせ	karase
Key constructions
Passive	からされる	karasareru
Causative	からさせる からさす	karasaseru karasasu
Potential	からせる	karaseru
Volitional	からそう	karasō
Negative	からさない	karasanai
Negative continuative	からさず	karasazu
Formal	からします	karashimasu
Perfective	からした	karashita
Conjunctive	からして	karashite
Hypothetical conditional	からせば	karaseba

Classical conjugation of "からす" (サ行四段活用, see Appendix:Japanese verbs.)

Stem forms
Irrealis (未然形)	からさ		karasa
Continuative (連用形)	からし		karasi
Terminal (終止形)	からす		karasu
Attributive (連体形)	からす		karasu
Realis (已然形)	からせ		karase
Imperative (命令形)	からせ		karase
Key constructions
Negative	からさず		karasazu
Contrasting conjunction	からせど		karasedo
Causal conjunction	からせば		karaseba
Conditional conjunction	からさば		karasaba
Past tense (firsthand knowledge)	からしき		karasiki
Past tense (secondhand knowledge)	からしけり		karasikeri
Perfect tense (conscious action)	からしつ		karasitu
Perfect tense (natural event)	からしぬ		karasinu
Perfect-continuative tense	からせり からしたり		karaseri karasitari
Volitional	からさむ		karasamu

Old Japanese

Etymology

From Proto-Japonic *karasu.

Likely of onomatopoeic origin.

Noun

からす (karasu)

1. a crow or raven

Quotations

For quotations using this term, see Citations:からす.