kinou

Kinou is a romaji rendering of several Japanese words that use different kanji but share the same pronunciation in everyday speech. The two most common meanings are 昨日, meaning “yesterday,” and 機能, meaning “function” or “capability.” Other rare readings or uses may exist, but these are the principal ones encountered in general language.

Pronunciation and reading notes: 昨日 is typically read きのう (kinō) in ordinary conversation, with a formal alternative 読みさくじつ (sakujitsu) used in some written contexts. 機能 is read きのう (kinō) in most standard compounds as well. Because kinou can correspond to different kanji, written context is important for disambiguation. In romanized form, kinou without a macron is ambiguous between these meanings.

Usage examples: As a time reference, 昨日 indicated the previous day: 昨日は忙しかった. As a technical term, 機能 refers to how something operates: ソフトウェアの機能を検証する (test the software’s functions). The same pronunciation appears in both words, but the meanings are distinct and guided by kanji and context.

Etymology and related terms: 昨日 combines 昨 (previous) and 日 (day), while 機能 combines 機 (mechanism) and 能 (ability). In dictionaries, kinou entries are typically distinguished by their kanji, with notes on reading variations and formal versus colloquial usage.

See also: Kinō as a topic often leads to disambiguation between yesterday and function in Japanese references and language guides.