明後日
あさって · asatte · JLPT N5 · noun
tomorrow
📅 明後日 = bright + after + day: the day after the next bright day
明日 (bright + day) is tomorrow; slipping 後 (after) inside gives the day after it. The reading asatte is a native word attached to the whole compound, not built from the kanji sounds. Sound hook: asa (morning) + tte, two mornings away.
日 — pictograph of the sun
日 is a pictograph of the sun, originally drawn as a circle with a dot or stroke inside representing the sun's substance. Over time the round shape was squared off into the modern rectangular form. It means 'sun' and by extension 'day'.
みょうごにち · myougonichi · JLPT N3 · noun
tomorrow
📅 明後日 = next + after + day: the day after the next day
明 means next here, as in 明日 (tomorrow). Add 後 (after) and the word means the day after tomorrow. The formal reading is myōgonichi; in casual speech most people say あさって (asatte).
日 — pictograph of the sun
日 is a pictograph of the sun, originally drawn as a circle with a dot or stroke inside representing the sun's substance. Over time the round shape was squared off into the modern rectangular form. It means 'sun' and by extension 'day'.