Kyoto

K5Y4O1T1O1
US/ˈkjoʊtoʊ/US/kiˈjoʊtoʊ/

proper noun

A prefecture on the island of Honshu, Japan.

OriginMiddle Chinese 京都 →
CommonScrabble 12
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Meanings

proper noun

alternative Kioto · alternative Kyōto

  1. A prefecture on the island of Honshu, Japan.
  2. The capital city of Kyoto Prefecture, Japan; and the country's former capital.

    The aversion to public displays of eating persists today not only in Kyoto but also throughout the higher levels of Japanese society.

    1987 June 7, Amanda Mayer Stinchecum, “Shopper's World: Osaka's Flavorful Feast of Noodles”, in The New York Times, archived from the original on 05 May 2017
  3. international lawThe Kyoto Protocol.

    The merits and limitations of Kyoto have been subject to great discussion. Some criticize the regime for being too top-down, wasteful and infective as a means of tacking climate change (Prins and Rayner 2007; Victor 2001).

    2013, Stewart Lockie, David A. Sonnenfeld, Dana R. Fisher, Routledge International Handbook of Social and Environmental Change, Routledge, →ISBN, page 112

Origin

  1. Middle Chinese京都“capital (of a country)”
  2. EnglishKyoto

Borrowed from Japanese 京(きょう)都(と) (Kyōto, literally “capital city”), from Middle Chinese 京都 (kjæng-tu, “capital (of a country)”).

More words from Middle Chinese

Full word history & related roots →

Translations

Arabic كِيُوتُو
  • كِيُوتُو (kiyūtū)Kyōto, Japan
Basque Kioto
  • KiotoKyōto, Japan
Bengali কিওটো
  • কিওটো (kiōṭō)Kyōto, Japan
Bulgarian Киото
  • Киото (Kioto)Kyōto, Japan
Catalan Kyoto
  • KyotoKyōto, Japan
Chinese Cantonese 京都
  • 京都 (ging¹ dou¹)Kyōto, Japan
Chinese Mandarin 京都
  • 京都 (Jīngdū)Kyōto, Japan
Czech Kjóto
  • KjótoKyōto, Japan
Danish Kyoto
  • KyotoKyōto, Japan
Dutch Kyoto
  • KyotoKyōto, Japan
Esperanto Kioto
  • KiotoKyōto, Japan
Estonian Kyōto
  • KyōtoKyōto, Japan
Finnish Kioto
  • KiotoKyōto, Japan
French Kyoto
  • KyotoKyōto, Japan
German Kyōto
  • KyōtoKyōto, Japan
Greek Κιότο
  • Κιότο (Kióto)Kyōto, Japan
Hebrew קְיוֹטוֹ
  • קְיוֹטוֹ (kyoto)Kyōto, Japan
Hindi क्योटो, क्योतो
  • क्योटो (kyoṭo)Kyōto, Japan
  • क्योतो (kyoto)Kyōto, Japan
Hungarian Kiotó
  • KiotóKyōto, Japan
Indonesian Kyoto
  • KyotoKyōto, Japan
Irish Ciótó
  • CiótóKyōto, Japan
Italian Kyoto
  • KyotoKyōto, Japan
Japanese 京都, 京都府
  • 京都 (Kyōto)Kyōto, Japan
  • 京都府 (Kyōto-fu)Kyōto, Japan
  • 京都市 (Kyōto-shi)Kyōto, Japan
Korean 교토, 교또
  • 교토 (Gyoto)Kyōto, Japan
  • 교또 (Gyotto)Kyōto, Japan
Latin Meacum, Miaco
  • MeacumKyōto, Japan
  • MiacoKyōto, Japan
  • KyotumKyōto, Japan
  • KiotoKyōto, Japan
  • KyotoKyōto, Japan
  • KiotumKyōto, Japan
Lithuanian Kiotas
  • KiotasKyōto, Japan
Norwegian Bokmål Kyoto
  • KyotoKyōto, Japan
Persian کیوتو
  • کیوتو (keyūtū)Kyōto, Japan
Polish Kioto
  • KiotoKyōto, Japan
Portuguese Quioto, Meaco
  • QuiotoKyōto, Japan
  • MeacoKyōto, Japan
Punjabi ਕਿਓਤੋ
  • ਕਿਓਤੋ (kioto)Kyōto, Japan
Romanian Kyoto
  • KyotoKyōto, Japan
Russian Кио́то
  • Кио́то (Kióto)Kyōto, Japan
Spanish Kioto
  • KiotoKyōto, Japan
Swedish Kyoto
  • KyotoKyōto, Japan
Thai เกียวโต
  • เกียวโต (giao-dtoo)Kyōto, Japan
Turkish Kyoto
  • KyotoKyōto, Japan
Ukrainian Кіо́то
  • Кіо́то (Kióto)Kyōto, Japan
Urdu کیوتو
  • کیوتو (kyoto)Kyōto, Japan
Vietnamese Kyoto, Kyōto
  • KyotoKyōto, Japan
  • KyōtoKyōto, Japan
  • (Sino-Vietnamese) Kinh ĐôKyōto, Japan

Rhymes & wordplay

Anagrams

Tokyo
Cite this entry
APA

Kyoto. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 3, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/Kyoto

MLA

“Kyoto.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/Kyoto. Accessed November 3, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “Kyoto,” accessed November 3, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/Kyoto.

Source: Kyoto on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.