How to Say "Black Hole" in Japanese

ブラックホール

burakku hōru[bɯ̟ɾa̠k̚kɯ̟̊ ho̞ːɾɯ̟]

The Japanese term for "black hole" is ブラックホール (burakku hōru).

ブラックホール is used to refer to the celestial body. It is a direct transliteration of the English term "black hole" into Katakana.

Meaning: celestial body (noun)

What does it mean word for word?

The term is a loanword from English, written in Katakana, which is the script used for foreign loanwords.

burakku hōru

The term ブラック (burakku) has evolved beyond its color to become a socio-economic label. The phrase ブラック企業 (burakku kigyō) is a common way to describe 'black companies' that are notorious for exploitative labor practices and long hours.
If you use the term ホール (hōru) to describe a building, you are likely referring to a 'hall' rather than a 'hole'. In Japanese, these two English words are both transliterated as ホール, meaning the listener relies entirely on context to know if you mean a void or a venue.
While ブラックホール is the standard term, Japanese also uses the term 黒孔 (kokkō), which is a direct translation of 'black' and 'hole' using kanji characters.

宇宙にはブラックホールがある。
Uchū ni wa burakku hōru ga aru.
There are black holes in space.
ブラックホールは非常に重力が強い。
Burakku hōru wa hijō ni jūryoku ga tsuyoi.
Black holes have extremely strong gravity.
ブラックホールの研究が進んでいる。
Burakku hōru no kenkyū ga susunde iru.
Research on black holes is progressing.

Yui and Ren are looking at a science book together.

結衣 Yui

この写真のブラックホール、すごいね。
kono shashin no burakku hōru, sugoi ne.
The black hole in this photo is amazing, isn't it?
蓮 Ren

本当だ。全部飲み込んでしまうのかな。
hontō da. zenbu nomikonde shimau no kana.
It really is. I wonder if it swallows everything up.
結衣 Yui

ブラックホールの中はどうなっているんだろう。
burakku hōru no naka wa dō natte iru n darō.
I wonder what it's like inside a black hole.
蓮 Ren

誰にも分からないから、もっと勉強しよう。
dare ni mo wakaranai kara, motto benkyō shiyō.
Nobody knows, so let's study more about it.

Sources

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