地震
jishin[d͡ʑiɕĩɴ]
The Japanese word for earthquake is 地震 (jishin).
地震 is a noun used to describe the shaking of the surface of a planet.
Meaning: shaking of the surface of a planet (noun)
What does it mean word for word?
The word is composed of the characters for 'ground' (地) and 'shake' or 'quake' (震).
How do you pronounce it?
jishin
Did you know?
- If you look at the historical roots, the word is linked to the classical verb 'furufu', which can also mean 'to roar'.
Examples in context
- 地震だった？Was it an earthquake?This example shows how to ask if a recent event was an earthquake using 地震.Tatoeba #8706037 by small_snow, translation #4628686 by Lazovic
- 地震があったの？Was there an earthquake?This example shows how to ask if an earthquake occurred using 地震.Tatoeba #8699807 by bunbuku, translation #2892414 by CK
- 地震かと思った。I thought it was an earthquake.This example shows how to express the thought that an event felt like an earthquake using 地震.Tatoeba #8802864 by small_snow, translation #5651698 by CK
- 今朝、大きな地震がありました。This morning, there was a big earthquake.
- 話を聞いて震度５だったことを知りました。I heard the story and found out it was an intensity 5 earthquake.
- 地震対策はしっかり行ってください。Please take proper measures against earthquakes.
- 90 more sentences on Tatoeba
Example conversation
Hiyori and Yota are talking about a recent event.
- 陽葵 Himari大きな地震が起きたね。Ōkina jishin ga okita ne.A big earthquake happened, didn't it?
- 陽太 Yotaうん、本当に怖かったよ。Un, hontō ni kowakatta yo.Yeah, it was really scary.
- 陽葵 Himari地震のときは、机の下に隠れて。Jishin no toki wa, tsukue no shita ni kakurete.During an earthquake, hide under the desk.
- 陽太 Yotaわかってるよ。陽葵、気をつけてね。Wakatteru yo. Hiyori, ki o tsukete ne.I know. Take care, Hiyori.
Sources
- Wiktionary, “earthquake” translations and entries 地震, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries 地震, CC BY-SA 4.0.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
