自ら
Meaning in Englishfor one's self, personally
Animated kanji stroke order
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Word context
What it means
What does 自ら mean? It means acting by oneself, personally, or of one's own accord; it emphasizes the subject's initiative and independence, often in formal or literary contexts.
Main meanings
- self-reference in action: the subject performs the verb's action themselves
- by one's own hand or initiative: emphasizes personal effort or agency
- personal agency or voluntariness: conveys action taken of one's own will
How to use it
Used in formal, literary, and journalistic contexts to stress the subject's own action or initiative; often with verbs of movement or decision; less common in casual speech where 自分で is preferred. Common constructions include 自ら進む and 自らの判断で決定する.
Variants and close terms
- 自分で (jibun de) — by oneself
- おのずから (onozukara) — by one's own accord (classical)
- 自身で (jishin de) — by oneself, with one's own hands
- 他者によって (tasha ni yotte) — by others (antonym)
Composition
- 自: self, oneself
- ら: suffix forming a reflexive/pronominal sense, turning self into a subject-focused form
Etymology
From 自 meaning self, combined with the suffix ら to form a reflexive pronoun/adverb; the common kun-reading in this compound is みずから (mizukara) or おのずから (onozukara) in classical usage.
Origin
Classical to modern Japanese usage; originally common in formal and literary language, and it remains standard in editorial, academic, and formal narrative contexts to stress the subject's own initiative.
Word class
pronoun/adverb (代名詞/副詞)