Toku
O-toku means 'a bargain' or 'a special'. The word
toku is a Chinese-derived word that means 'benefit' or 'advantage'. The o-
is prefixed as a form of respect by retailers towards the general public, informing
them that this is to your 'honourable benefit', as the clichéd translation goes.
In Chinese characters, o-toku is written   .
This can be found frequently enough. :
Suimingu pasupōto
Kikan-chū nando demo go-riyō itadakeru o-toku na pasupōto desu.
Swimming passport
A bargain passport that can be used any time during the term of validity. |
But it's also very common to write toku in katakana
as  .
Onna no ko da mon. Toku shinakucha.
I'm a girl! I've got to get a bargain. |
Kono natsu o-toku na kippu
This summer, a bargain ticket |
Furii eria nai no Shinkansen, tokkyū shiteiseki
ga nori-hōdai de kono o-nedan.
Danjo futari de (Tōkyō toku-nai hatsu)
44,000 en
Tatoeba o-futari deTōkyō kara Aomori made tabi o suru to?
Yaku 20,000 en mo o-toku!
Shinkansen and express reserved seats can be used freely within the 'free
area', and at this price.
For a couple (departing from within Tokyo to)
44,000 yen
So if two travel from Tokyo to Aomori?
Roughly 20,000 yen saving! |
This usage is probably related to the aggressive advertising and promotional
nature of the term. The character
means simply 'to obtain', as a verb read eru. It
is apt to be used i spoken sales pitches (okyakusama,
o-toku desu yo! -- 'It's a bargain!'). Katakana are useful in
emphasising this.
The following distribution of forms was found through a Google search in August
2003. is
by far the favoured form.
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