根っこ・根っ子|ねっこnekko[3]odaka (tail-high)

1. nounroot (of a plant)
2. nounstump (of a tree)
3. nounroot (of a problem, etc.); base; foundation; origin; source

• Synonym根ねNeutralThe standard word for a plant's root or the source of things, as in 「根が深い」; 「根っこ」 is its colloquial, emphatic variant.
• Synonym根元ねもとNeutralPoints to the root area at the base of a trunk, or the source of a problem, as in 「髪の根元」; 「根っこ」 is more colloquial and also covers a person's nature.
• Synonym根株ねかぶWrittenA written term for the stump left after a tree is cut down; 「根っこ」 centers on the root itself.
• Related切り株きりかぶNeutralThe everyday word for a stump left after felling, or rice stubble; 「根っこ」 centers on the root itself.
• Antonym先端せんたんNeutralMeans the tip or pointed end, and by extension the forefront of a field; common in daily use too, and opposite to 「根っこ」 on the root-versus-tip axis.
• Antonym先っちょさきっちょCasualColloquial for the tip or end of something; on the root-versus-tip axis it is the opposite of 「根っこ」.

Use 「根っこ」 colloquially for a plant's roots or the essence of a thing or person, as in 「木の根っこ」 and 「根っこは優しい人」. In formal speech use 「根」; for the base part use 「根元」; for a stump use 「切り株」; the opposite is 「先端」.

Usage comparisons are AI-assisted and cross-checked by multiple models; for study reference only

1. 植物しょくぶつの根ね。
2. 物事ものごとの本質ほんしつ、本来ほんらいの性質せいしつ、性格せいかく。