Meaning
逓 (テイ) carries three interlocking ideas: successive relay, gradual progression, and transmission along a chain. Picture something — a message, a horse, a parcel, a number — passed from station to station, each stop receiving and forwarding to the next in orderly sequence. That relay logic makes 逓 relevant across two domains in modern Japanese: postal and communications history, and economics.
Structurally, 逓 combines two elements. The radical 辶 (shinnyō, the "road" or "movement" radical) runs along the lower-left and bottom, signaling travel and progression along a path. Above it sits 弟 (younger brother), which mainly supplies the テイ sound. But the connection isn't purely phonetic — younger siblings come after older ones, in sequence. 逓 borrows that same sense of proceeding one step at a time.
Historically, 逓 sat at the heart of Japan's imperial communications network. The Teishinshō (逓信省), or Ministry of Communications, managed telegraph, telephone, and postal services from the Meiji era until 1943. That bureaucratic heritage gives 逓 a formal, official feel — you'll encounter it far more in written and academic texts than in everyday speech.
逓 has 10 strokes: three for the road radical 辶 and seven for the component 弟. It carries no elementary-school grade designation — this is advanced vocabulary. The traditional pre-war form is 遞, simplified to 逓 in the postwar Joyo kanji reforms. At JLPT N1, knowing 逓 signals genuine familiarity with formal, technical, and historical Japanese.
Readings
On'yomi (音読み) — Chinese-derived readings
テイ is the only on'yomi. It traces to Middle Chinese, entering Japanese during the classical era of continental cultural exchange. Since 逓 appears almost exclusively in Sino-Japanese compound words (熟語, jukugo), テイ is the only reading you need — it covers postal history, economic trends, and sequential ordering alike.
Key compounds using the テイ reading include:
- 逓信 (teishin) — postal and telecommunications services; historically, the domain of the government Ministry of Communications
- 逓増 (teizō) — gradual increase; common in economics, statistics, and business reporting
- 逓減 (teigen) — gradual decrease; used in phrases such as 収穫逓減 (diminishing returns)
- 逓送 (teisō) — relay transport; conveying goods or messages through successive stations
- 逓次 (teiji) — successively; one after another in orderly progression
Kun'yomi (訓読み) — Native Japanese readings
逓 has no standard kun'yomi in modern Japanese. Classical texts occasionally show たがいに (tagai ni), meaning "mutually" or "in turn" — an archaic usage absent from contemporary writing and the JLPT. Focus entirely on テイ. Every practical use of this kanji is a Sino-Japanese compound.
Common Words & Compounds
Despite its rarity in casual speech, 逓 clusters around two thematic groups: communication and postal history, and gradual quantitative change in economics and statistics.
Communication and Postal Services
逓信 (teishin) — postal and telecommunications; the overarching term for government-managed communication services in Meiji
and Taishō-era Japan
逓信省 (Teishinshō) — Ministry of Communications; the government agency (1885–1943) that administered Japan's postal, telegraph, and telephone networks
逓送 (teisō) — relay transport; the successive forwarding of goods, mail, or information through a network of stations
逓伝 (teiden) — successive transmission; passing information or authority along a chain of intermediaries
逓馬 (teiba) — relay horse; horses stationed at post stops in ancient and medieval Japan to carry official dispatches across the country
Gradual Change in Economics and Statistics
- 逓増 (teizō) — gradual increase; steady upward progression in quantity, price, or value over time
- 逓減 (teigen) — gradual decrease; appears in the essential economic term 収穫逓減 (law of diminishing returns)
- 逓加 (teika) — successive addition; increasing by regular increments
- 逓落 (teiraku) — gradual decline in price or market value
- 逓進 (teishin) — gradual advance; progressive forward movement
Sequential Ordering
- 逓次 (teiji) — successively; in sequence; used in formal writing to indicate orderly progression through a series of items or stages
Example Sentences
生産量が毎年逓増している。
Seisanryō ga maitoshi teizō shite iru.
Production output is climbing steadily year by year.
経費が逓減傾向にある。
Keihi ga teigen keikō ni aru.
Expenses are on a gradual downward trend.
逓信省は明治時代に設立された。
Teishinshō wa Meiji jidai ni setsuritsu sareta.
The Ministry of Communications was established during the Meiji era.
情報は逓次に各部署へ伝達された。
Jōhō wa teiji ni kaku busho e dentatsu sareta.
Information was passed to each department in turn.
収穫逓減の法則は経済学の基本だ。
Shūkaku teigen no hōsoku wa keizaigaku no kihon da.
The law of diminishing returns is a cornerstone of economics.
貨物は各地の中継所を経由して逓送された。
Kamotsu wa kakuchi no chūkeijo wo keiyu shite teisō sareta.
The cargo was relayed through waystation networks across the country.
この地域の人口は逓減が続いている。
Kono chiiki no jinkō wa teigen ga tsuzuite iru.
This region's population has been in steady decline.
古代の逓馬制度は公文書を素早く運んだ。
Kodai no teiba seido wa kōmonjō wo subayaku hakonda.
The ancient relay horse system carried official documents at speed.
売上が逓増し、会社の業績が大幅に改善した。
Uriage ga teizō shi, kaisha no gyōseki ga ōhaba ni kaizen shita.
Sales climbed steadily, and the company's performance improved sharply.
Memory Tip
Picture a relay race along an ancient road. The radical 辶 at the base traces the road itself — a winding path stretching from station to station. Above it sits 弟 (younger brother): in a traditional family, each sibling comes after the older one in sequence, receiving the torch and passing it forward. 逓 works the same way — baton to baton, station to station, step by step. Whenever you see 逓, think: "the younger brother runs the relay along the road" — and successive, gradual, in-turn all fall into place.