Meaning

Primary

Silence

Word Type

noun

Explanation

When you have nothing to say you sit in silence.

Reading

むごん
  • Kyoko
    (Tokyo accent, female)
  • Kenichi
    (Tokyo accent, male)

Explanation

This is a jukugo word that uses the on'yomi readings of the kanji. You didn't learn this reading for though, so here's a mnemonic to help you:

Nothing cuts through silence like a gong (ごん). Once it's done gonging you really notice how silent the world around you is.

Context

Context Sentences

毎晩無言電話がかかってくるんです。

Every night I get a silent prank phone call.

彼は無言のまま部屋を出て行った。

He left the room without saying a word.

トーフグの社員たちは、無言で仕事をしているように見えますが、実はスラックというアプリでチャットしています。

Tofugu workers seem to work silently, but they are actually chatting on an app called Slack.

Kanji Composition