デパート
depāto[de̞pa̠ːto̞]
The English phrase department store is expressed in Japanese as デパート (depāto), 百貨店 or デパートメントストア.
Meaning: store containing many departments (noun)
Ways to say it
| Japanese | Romanization (Wiktionary) | IPA |
|---|---|---|
| デパート | depāto | [de̞pa̠ːto̞] (narrow) |
| 百貨店 | hyakkaten | [ça̠k̚ka̠tẽ̞ɴ] (narrow) |
| デパートメントストア | depātomento sutoa |
All three forms refer to a store containing many departments. While they all mean the same thing, they are used in different contexts ranging from casual conversation to formal business.
What does it mean word for word?
The term 百貨店 literally means 'one hundred goods store', where the character 百 (hundred) is used to imply a vast variety.
Which one should you use?
デパート is the most common, everyday way to say department store in conversation. 百貨店 is the formal, more technical term for a department store, often used in business contexts or official signage. デパートメントストア is a direct phonetic transliteration of the English phrase, but it is much less common in daily speech than デパート.
How do you pronounce it?
depāto
Did you know?
- Many Japanese デパート operate their own internal 'depachika', specialized food halls in the basement that are cultural destinations in their own right.
- The formal term 百貨店 shares its root 百貨 with the word for an encyclopedia, 百科事典, because both imply a collection of all kinds of knowledge or goods.
- In Japan, デパート are often used as landmarks for meeting people, and some stores even provide dedicated 'meeting points' near the entrance for this purpose.
Examples in context
- デパートで買った。I bought it at a department store.This sentence uses デパート to show a completed purchase.Tatoeba #159726 by KK_kaku_, translation #254796 by CK
- デパートで新しい帽子を買った。I got a new hat at the department store.This sentence uses デパート to describe buying a specific item.Tatoeba #202147 by wat, translation #39359 by CK
- そのデパートの前に書店がある。There is a bookstore in front of the department store.This sentence uses デパート to describe a location relative to a bookstore.Tatoeba #212947 by bunbuku, translation #50232 by CK
- 私はデパートで買い物をします。I go shopping at the department store.
- あのデパートは広くて素晴らしいです。That department store is spacious and wonderful.
- 明日、友達と百貨店に行く予定です。I am planning to go to the department store with my friend tomorrow.
- この百貨店にはたくさんのブランドがあります。This department store has many brands.
- 若者に人気の高島屋で最新のファッションをチェックしましょう。Let's check out the latest fashion at the popular Takashimaya among young people.
- 彼女はいつもそごうでお買い物をします。She always goes shopping at Sogo.
- 24 more sentences on Tatoeba
Example conversation
Two friends are deciding where to go shopping.
- 蓮 Ren今日の買い物は、デパートに行く？Kyō no kaimono wa, depāto ni iku?Are we going to a department store for today's shopping?
- 結衣 Yuiうん、駅の近くのデパートがいいな。Un, eki no chikaku no depāto ga ii na.Yeah, a department store near the station would be nice.
- 蓮 Renあそこのデパートは、品揃えが豊富だよね。Asoko no depāto wa, shinazoroe ga hōfu da yo ne.That department store has a great selection, doesn't it?
- 結衣 Yuiそうだね。たくさん買い物できそう！Sō da ne. Takusan kaimono dekisō!That's true. It looks like we can do a lot of shopping!
Sources
- Wiktionary, “department store” translations and entries デパート, 百貨店, デパートメントストア, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
