運転手
untenshu[ɯ̟̃ntẽ̞ɰ̃ɕɨ]
In Japanese, the word for driver is 運転手 (untenshu). It is also spelled ドライバ (doraiba). Wiktionary also lists 運転者 (untensha) and ドライバー (doraibā).
Meaning: person who drives a motorized vehicle, such as a car or a bus (noun)
Ways to say it
| Japanese | Romanization (Wiktionary) | IPA | Note |
|---|---|---|---|
| 運転手 | untenshu | [ɯ̟̃ntẽ̞ɰ̃ɕɨ] (narrow) | |
| 運転者 | untensha | ||
| ドライバ | doraiba | [do̞ɾa̠iba̠] (narrow) | alternative form |
| ドライバー | doraibā | [do̞ɾa̠iba̠ː] (narrow) |
The term refers to a person who drives a motorized vehicle, such as a car or a bus.
Which one should you use?
運転手 is the standard term used when referring to a person's occupation, such as a taxi or bus driver. In contrast, 運転者 is a more formal or technical term often used in legal contexts, traffic reports or official documents to refer to the person operating a vehicle. Additionally, ドライバー is a loanword from English and is frequently used in modern contexts, such as in sports (e.g., golf driver) or computer science (device driver), rather than for a person driving a bus. The spelling ドライバ is an alternative spelling of ドライバー.
How do you pronounce it?
untenshu
Did you know?
- While ドライバー refers to a car driver in English, in a Japanese hardware store it almost always refers to a 'screwdriver' (ドライバー).
- In Japan, taxi 運転手 are famous for their extreme politeness, often wearing white gloves and opening the car door for passengers by hand.
- When referring to a highly skilled professional driver, such as a chauffeur, Japanese speakers might use the more polite term 運転士 (untenshi) instead of 運転手.
Examples in context
- 彼はバスの運転手だ。He is a bus driver.This sentence is useful for identifying someone's job using 運転手.Tatoeba #111279 by bunbuku, translation #292404 by CK
- 運転手がドアを開けた。The driver opened the door.This sentence is useful for describing an action performed by the 運転手.Tatoeba #12593302 by small_snow, translation #10740472 by ddnktr
- 運転手の横に座りました。I sat next to the driver.This sentence is useful for describing a physical position relative to the 運転手.Tatoeba #11753219 by small_snow, translation #10012204 by ddnktr
- 当社のタクシーの運転手はとても親切です。Our taxi driver is very kind.
- 49 more sentences on Tatoeba
Example conversation
At a taxi stand, a young woman asks her brother about the taxi driver.
- 陽葵 Himariあの運転手さんは親切そうですね。Ano untenshu-san wa shinsetsu sō desu ne.That driver looks kind.
- 陽太 Yotaそうだね、陽葵。すごく丁寧だよ。Sō da ne, Himari. Sugoku teinei da yo.You're right, Himari. He is very polite.
- 陽葵 Himari運転手さんに荷物を預けてもいいかな？Untenshu-san ni nimotsu o azukete mo ii kana?Is it okay to ask the driver to hold my luggage?
- 陽太 Yotaうん、僕が聞いておくよ。Un, boku ga kiite oku yo.Yeah, I will ask him for you.
Sources
- Wiktionary, “driver” translations and entries 運転手, ドライバ, ドライバー, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
