墓地
bochi[bo̞t͡ɕi]
The Japanese word for cemetery is 墓地 (bochi).
墓地 is the general word for a cemetery or graveyard, from a small temple graveyard to a large public cemetery.
What does it mean word for word?
墓 means grave and 地 means ground or land, so the word is literally grave ground.
How do you pronounce it?
墓地 is read bochi, pronounced [bo̞t͡ɕi].
When do people say it?
Families visit and clean the graves of their relatives, a custom called お墓参り. It is especially common in the summer Bon season and around the spring and autumn equinoxes.
Did you know?
- The character 墓 changes its pronunciation from haka when referring to a single grave to bo when it appears in the compound 墓地.
- While 墓地 is the standard term, larger park-like memorial gardens are called 霊園 ('spirit garden'), which implies a more peaceful and scenic atmosphere.
- Japanese 墓地 are frequently located directly on the grounds of Buddhist temples, making the cemetery an integral part of the religious complex.
Examples in context
- 墓地を抜けよう。その方が近いよ。Let's go through the cemetery. It's shorter that way.墓地を抜けよう suggests taking a shortcut through the cemetery.Tatoeba #12003608 by small_snow, translation #12223315 by CK
- Ｊ．Ｆ．ケネディはアーリントン墓地に埋葬された。J.F. Kennedy was buried in Arlington Cemetery.Here 墓地 follows a place name, as in アーリントン墓地 for Arlington Cemetery.Tatoeba #234836 by bunbuku, translation #72213 by CK
- トムとメアリーは二人のお母さんのお墓参りのために墓地に行きました。Tom and Mary went to the cemetery to visit their mothers' graves.お墓参り means visiting a grave, which is why Tom and Mary went to the 墓地.Tatoeba #8292531 by phenomenol, translation #6494994 by CT
- 2 more sentences on Tatoeba
Example conversation
Two friends are walking near a park.
- 陽太 Yotaこの近くに古い墓地がありますか？Kono chikaku ni furui bochi ga arimasu ka?Is there an old cemetery near here?
- 美咲 Misakiはい、あの丘の上にありますよ。Hai, ano oka no ue ni arimasu yo.Yes, it is up on that hill.
- 陽太 Yota少し歩くと着きますか？Sukoshi aruku to tsukimasu ka?Will I get there if I walk a little?
- 美咲 Misaki歩いて十分くらいですよ。Aruite juppun kurai desu yo.It takes about ten minutes on foot.
Sources
- Pronunciation: Wiktionary entry 墓地, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
