音読み: ソ
訓読み: うったえる
画数: 12
部首: 言（ごんべん）
Meaning
To appeal / To complain / To accuse
- 訴える — to appeal; to complain; to take (someone) to court
- 訴訟 — lawsuit; legal action
- 告訴 — accusation; formal complaint
- 訴求 — appeal; marketing appeal (“this really speaks to customers”)
- 訴状 — written complaint / statement filed with a court
- 訴願 — formal petition / appeal
- 訴求力 — persuasive power; pulling power with the audience
On the left is 言 — speech, words, saying something out loud. On the right is 斥, which gives the sound ソ. Together, 訴 is literally “to speak out,” especially when you want someone to hear, judge, or fix something — complain, accuse, appeal.
求める means “to ask for; to want.” Put together with 訴, as in 訴求, it’s not about suing — it’s about “appealing to what people want.” In marketing, 訴求 is how a message speaks to your desire.
Creates
告訴 — formal accusation / legal complaint.