No. 1 in Japanese
元
"元" means "origin," "basis," "foundation," or "former."
In a sentence
元気な子供たちが公園で遊んでいます。
Energetic children are playing in the park.
In this sentence, '元気' (genki) combines with '元' to mean 'vitality' or 'energy', describing the state of the children.
この旧い建物は江戸時代が元です。
This old building originates from the Edo period.
Here, '元' (moto) is used to signify 'origin' or 'source', referring to the Edo period as the origin of the building.
その情報は元の文章から取りました。
That information was taken from the original document.
In this usage, '元の' (moto no) means 'original', specifying that the information is from the original document.
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