Word
流れ
Meaning in Englishstream, current
Animated kanji stroke order
Word context
What it means
What does 流れ mean? It denotes the ongoing movement along a path, whether the physical flow of water or the progression of events, and it can also refer to trends or directions in a situation.
Main meanings
- Flow of a liquid or gas; physical movement of water, air, etc.
- Sequence or progression of events; the course something takes over time.
- Trend or tendency; the general direction in a situation or field.
- Flow of people or traffic; movement along a space or route.
- Flow of thoughts or ideas; a stream of consciousness.
How to use it
Used in both literal and metaphorical contexts across registers: physical phenomena like 水の流れ or 川の流れ, as well as abstract progress such as 物事の流れ or 世の流れ; common in phrases like 流れに乗る, 流れを作る, 流れを読む, and in journalism and storytelling to describe the sequence or direction of events.
Variants and close terms
- 潮流 (ちょうりゅう) — trend/current chōryū
- 経過 (けいか) — progression, passage keika
- 動き (うごき) — movement ugoki
- 流動 (りゅうどう) — fluidity, liquidity ryūdō
Composition
- 流: flow, current; れ: okurigana that nominalizes the verb stem, turning it into a noun that denotes the flow or course
Etymology
流 (nagare as the kun-reading) with the nominalizing suffix れ forming the noun 流れ; the verb 流れる supplies the semantic core of movement and flow; on-reading ryū appears in related compounds.
Word class
Noun (名詞)