Meaning
Two distinct meanings live inside 尉. In modern military contexts, it refers to company-grade officers — the ranks of second lieutenant, first lieutenant, and captain. In classical usage, it carried the sense of soothing or calming a person, a meaning shared with the related kanji 慰.
The character's origin is a pictograph of someone pressing downward with a heated implement — think of ironing cloth flat. That image of controlled, deliberate force gave rise to both meanings: the officer who presses chaos into order, and the act of pressing away emotional distress. The bottom component 寸 (sun) — a hand, a precise measure — reinforces this sense of firm, careful authority.
At 11 strokes, 尉 sits in Japan's secondary Jōyō list. It rarely comes up in casual conversation, but you'll meet it in military journalism, feudal-era fiction, and classical theater. Noh adds its own layer. In that tradition, 尉 (じょう) names the dignified aged male character who wears a white-haired mask and moves with slow deliberateness — a figure who both commands and soothes, bridging the character's two meanings in a single stage presence.
Readings
On'yomi (音読み) — Chinese-derived readings
尉 has two on'yomi, each from a different historical layer of Chinese imported into Japanese.
イ (i) — The primary modern reading, from the Kan'on (漢音) layer. Every contemporary military rank uses this form, as does 尉官, the collective term for company-grade officers:
- 大尉 (taii) — Captain (Army/Air Force) or Lieutenant (Navy); the senior company-grade rank
- 中尉 (chūi) — First Lieutenant; the middle rank
- 少尉 (shōi) — Second Lieutenant; the entry-level commissioned rank
ジョウ (jō) — A classical reading from the Go'on (呉音) layer, rarely heard in modern speech. It survives in Noh theater and historical texts. The Noh character 尉 is an aged man in a white mask, every movement measured and unhurried. The reading also appears in 検非違使尉 (kebiishi no jō), the lieutenant post within the Heian imperial police.
Kun'yomi (訓読み) — Native Japanese readings
尉 has no kun'yomi. The character arrived from Chinese carrying an institutional concept — military rank — with no ready native Japanese word to attach it to. Only the two Sino-Japanese readings above apply.
Common Words & Compounds
尉 appears across three registers: modern military rank, Self-Defense Force titles, and classical theater and history.
Modern Military Ranks (現代軍事)
- 大尉 (taii) — Captain (Army/Air Force) or Lieutenant (Navy)
- 中尉 (chūi) — First Lieutenant
- 少尉 (shōi) — Second Lieutenant or Ensign
- 尉官 (ikan) — Company-grade officers as a group (少尉, 中尉, 大尉)
- 一等陸尉 (ittō rikui) — First Class Ground Officer, Japan Ground Self-Defense Force
- 二等海尉 (nitō kaii) — Second Class Maritime Officer, Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force
- 三等空尉 (santō kūi) — Third Class Air Officer, Japan Air Self-Defense Force
Classical, Theatrical, and Historical (古典・演劇・歴史)
- 尉面 (jōmen) — The white old man's Noh mask; an icon of classical theater representing age and dignity
- 老尉 (rōjō) — An elderly warrior or sage character type in Noh performance
- 検非違使尉 (kebiishi no jō) — Lieutenant of the Imperial Police; a Heian-period post combining military and civil authority
Example Sentences
彼は陸上自衛隊の大尉だ。
Kare wa rikujō jieitai no taii da.
He is a captain in the Japan Ground Self-Defense Force.
少尉に昇進したことを家族に知らせた。
Shōi ni shōshin shita koto wo kazoku ni shiraseta.
He told his family about his promotion to second lieutenant.
中尉は部下に命令を下した。
Chūi wa buka ni meirei wo kudashita.
The first lieutenant issued orders to his subordinates.
尉官クラスの将校が緊急会議に出席した。
Ikan kurasu no shōkō ga kinkyū kaigi ni shusseki shita.
Company-grade officers attended the emergency meeting.
能の舞台では、尉の面を着けた老翁が静かに登場した。
Nō no butai de wa, jō no men wo tsuketa rōō ga shizuka ni tōjō shita.
On the Noh stage, an elderly man in the jō mask made a quiet entrance.
大尉は危機的な状況でも冷静さを保った。
Taii wa kikiteki na jōkyō demo reiseisa wo tamotta.
Even under pressure, the captain kept his composure.
彼女は三等空尉として航空自衛隊に入隊した。
Kanojo wa santō kūi to shite kōkū jieitai ni nyūtai shita.
She joined the Air Self-Defense Force as a third class air officer.
尉官から佐官への昇格は、激しい競争を勝ち抜く必要がある。
Ikan kara sakan e no shōkaku wa, hageshii kyōsō wo kachinuku hitsuyō ga aru.
Moving from company-grade to field-grade officer means surviving fierce competition.
歴史小説に検非違使尉という平安時代の役職が登場した。
Rekishi shōsetsu ni kebiishi no jō to iu Heian jidai no yakushoku ga tōjō shita.
A historical novel featured the kebiishi no jō, a law-enforcement post from the Heian period.
Memory Tip
Picture the 寸 component — a hand, a precise measure — as an officer raising one firm arm to command silence. The reading イ (i) sounds like a soldier's crisp acknowledgment: 「イ!」 (Yes, sir!). For 大尉 (taii), imagine a captain straightening his tie before inspection — taii ≈ tie, sharp and formal. For the classical ジョウ (jō), picture a じいさん (old man) gliding across a Noh stage in a white mask, every step deliberate. One reading belongs to the barracks, the other to the stage.