無地

むじ · muji · JLPT N2 · na-adj

plain

無 (mu, none) + 地 (ji, ground): ground with nothing on it, so plain

無 means none or without, and 地 means ground or fabric base. Together, 無地 describes cloth or paper with no pattern printed on it.

地 — earth 土 + 也 (phonetic)
地 is a semantic-phonetic compound. The left component 土 means 'earth' or 'soil' and gives the meaning, while 也 on the right hints at the pronunciation. Originally referring to the ground or land, it broadened to mean 'place,' 'region,' and 'territory.'

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