ロバ
roba
The Japanese word for donkey is ロバ (roba).
The term refers to the domestic animal, a donkey.
Meaning: a domestic animal (noun)
Which one should you use?
While ロバ is the standard term, you may also encounter ドンキー, which is a loanword from English.
How do you pronounce it?
roba
Did you know?
- Japanese uses the word ろば in the idiom ろばの耳に念仏, which translates to 'chanting Buddhist prayers into a donkey's ear'.
- In Japanese culture, the donkey is not traditionally seen as a symbol of stubbornness in the same way it is in Western folklore.
- In Japanese, the word ロバ is written in Katakana, the script typically reserved for foreign loanwords, even though the word has been part of the language for a long time.
Examples in context
- ロバはとても丈夫な動物です。Roba wa totemo joubu na doubutsu desu.Donkeys are very sturdy animals.
- 農場にロバがいました。Noujou ni roba ga imashita.There was a donkey on the farm.
- ロバに荷物を載せました。Roba ni nimotsu o nosemashita.I loaded the luggage onto the donkey.
Example conversation
Daito and Himari are looking at a picture book about animals.
- 大翔 Hiroto陽葵、この動物はなあに？Himari, kono dōbutsu wa nāni?Himari, what is this animal?
- 陽葵 Himariこれはロバだよ。Kore wa roba dayo.This is a donkey.
- 大翔 Hirotoロバって耳が長いね。Roba tte mimi ga nagai ne.Donkeys have long ears, don't they?
- 陽葵 Himariうん、本当に長いね。Un, hontō ni nagai ne.Yeah, they really are long.
Sources
- Pronunciation: Wiktionary entry ロバ, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
