Word
中古
Meaning in Englishused, secondhand
Animated kanji stroke order
Sentence
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Word context
What it means
In common usage, 中古 designates goods that have been previously owned or used, i.e., secondhand or pre-owned items, rather than new ones.
Main meanings
- Used or pre-owned status for items, frequently appearing in contexts like 中古品 and 中古車 to indicate non-new condition.
How to use it
Primarily used in retail, classifieds, and product descriptions to label pre-owned items; it functions as a noun or as a modifier with の, and is common in both written and spoken Japanese when discussing the condition of goods.
Variants and close terms
- 中古品 chuuko-hin: secondhand goods
- 中古車 chuuko-sha: used car
- リサイクル品 risakairu-hin: recycled goods
Composition
- 中 middle, center
- 古 old, former
- Together they form a sense of something that is not new, i.e., previously owned, hence secondhand goods.
Word class
Noun (名詞)
Word
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Kanji