le Japon
masculine
The English phrase "japan" is translated into French as le Japon.
le Japon is the name of the country in East Asia. While le Japon refers to the nation, the lowercase japon (without the article) can also refer to a substance used to varnish something.
Meaning: a country in East Asia (name)
Which one should you use?
The capitalized form with the article, le Japon, refers to the country, whereas the lowercase japon refers to the substance used for varnishing.
Related words
How does it change in a sentence?
Because le Japon is a masculine country, you use the contraction au (a combination of à and le) to say "to Japan" or "in Japan". To express "from Japan" or "of Japan", use the contraction du (a combination of de and le).
Did you know?
- The Portuguese term Japão that influenced Japon actually originated from a Hokkien pronunciation of the characters meaning 'sun's origin'.
- In French, the word japon refers to a specific type of black varnish used for luxury items like furniture or ink pots.
Examples in context
- Ceci est le Japon.This is Japan.This sentence is useful for identifying the country using le Japon.Tatoeba #867724 by Micsmithel, translation #55477 by CK
- Le Japon est bizarre.Japan is weird.This sentence is useful for describing a quality of le Japon.Tatoeba #2281108 by sacredceltic, translation #2276564 by Hybrid
- Le Japon est en Asie.Japan is in Asia.This sentence is useful for stating the location of le Japon.Tatoeba #6468742 by Aiji, translation #1412495 by CK
- 207 more sentences on Tatoeba
Example conversation
Léa and Nathan are talking about their next travel destination.
- LéaTu veux aller au Japon ?Do you want to go to Japan?
- NathanOui, j'adore le Japon.Yes, I love Japan.
- LéaLe Japon est magnifique en automne.Japan is beautiful in autumn.
- NathanC'est vrai, partons-y ensemble !That's true, let's go there together!
Sources
- Wiktionary, “japan” translations, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries Japon, japon, le, CC BY-SA 4.0.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
