エミュー
emyū[e̞mʲɨː]
The Japanese word for emu is エミュー (emyū). Wiktionary also lists 鴯鶓 (emyū).
Meaning: Dromaius novaehollandiae (noun)
Ways to say it
| Japanese | Romanization (Wiktionary) | IPA |
|---|---|---|
| エミュー | emyū | [e̞mʲɨː] (narrow) |
| 鴯鶓 | emyū |
The term refers to the bird species Dromaius novaehollandiae.
Which one should you use?
エミュー is the standard way to write the word, while 鴯鶓 is a kanji representation of the same term.
How do you pronounce it?
emyū
Did you know?
- While the katakana spelling エミュー is most common, the kanji version 鴯鶓 is an orthographic borrowing from Chinese rather than an indigenous Japanese term.
- While エミュー is the common word, the kanji 鴯鶓 uses characters that are extremely rare even for native Japanese speakers to read without assistance.
- The kanji for emu 鴯鶓 contains the radical 鳥, which is the general character for 'bird'.
Examples in context
- エミューちゃんの大食いぶりには驚きます。I'm amazed by how much an emu can eat.
- エミューはとても足が速いです。Emyū wa totemo ashi ga hayai desu.Emus are very fast runners.
- 動物園でエミューを見ました。Dōbutsuen de emyū o mimashita.I saw an emu at the zoo.
- エミューは大きな鳥ですね。Emyū wa ōkina tori desu ne.An emu is a large bird, isn't it?
Example conversation
Misaki and Yota are looking at a bird guide book.
- 美咲 Misaki陽太、この鳥はエミューだよ。Yōta, kono tori wa emyū dayo.Yota, this bird is an emu.
- 陽太 Yota本当だ。とても大きいね。Hontō da. Totemo ōkii ne.You're right. It's very big.
- 美咲 Misakiエミューはオーストラリアに住んでいるよ。Emyū wa Ōsutoraria ni sunde iru yo.Emus live in Australia.
- 陽太 Yotaいつか本物を見てみたいな。Itsuka honmono o mite mitai na.I want to see a real one someday.
Sources
- Wiktionary, “emu” translations and entries エミュー, 鴯鶓, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries エミュー, 鴯鶓, CC BY-SA 4.0.
