操り人形

Japanese

Kanji in this term
操	人	形
あやつ Grade: 6	にん Grade: 1	ぎょう Grade: 2
kun'yomi	goon

Etymology

Compound of 操(あやつ)り (ayatsuri, 連(れん)用(よう)形(けい) (ren'yōkei, “stem or continuative form”) of the verb 操(あやつ)る (ayatsuru, “to control, to operate”)) + 人(にん)形(ぎょう) (ningyō, “doll; puppet”).

Pronunciation

• (Tokyo) あやつりに​んぎょー [àyátsúrí níꜜǹgyòò] (Nakadaka – [5])
• IPA^(key): [a̠ja̠t͡sɨᵝɾʲi ɲ̟ĩŋʲɡʲo̞ː]

Noun

操(あやつ)り人(にん)形(ぎょう) • (ayatsuri ningyō) ^{←あやつりにんぎやう (ayaturi ningyau)?}

1. puppet; marionette

   Synonym: 傀儡 (kairai, kugutsu)

   • 1938, Kensaku Shimaki, Zokuseibutsu no Tankyū‎^[1]:

     大(だい)都(と)市(し)の朝(あさ)の活(くわつ)動(どう)が始(はじ)まつたばかりといふいきいきした感(かん)じは受(う)けずに、全(ぜん)體(たい)が大(おほ)きな裝(さう)置(ち)だけの感(かん)じで、動(うご)いてゐる人(にん)間(げん)も操(あやつ)り人(にん)形(ぎやう)のやうだつた。

     Daitoshi no asa no katsudō ga hajimatta bakari to iu ikiiki shita kanji wa ukezu ni, zentai ga ookina sōchi dake no kanji de, ugoite iru ningen mo ayatsuri ningyō no yō datta.

     He did not get the lively feeling that the morning's activities in the big city have just begun; the whole place felt like nothing more than a big stage setting, and the people in motion seemed like puppets.