私の年齢
watashi no nenrei
In Japanese, "my age" is 私の年齢 (watashi no nenrei).
The phrase refers to the number of years a person has lived.
What does it mean word for word?
The phrase is composed of 私 (watashi – I/me), の (no – possessive particle) and 年齢 (nenrei – age).
Is there a formal and an informal way to say it?
The word 年齢 (nenrei) is a formal or technical term for age, often used in official documents or polite conversation.
How do you pronounce it?
watashi no nenrei
Did you know?
- In traditional Japanese culture, the concept of 'age' was once counted as kazoedoshi, where a person is one year old at birth and gains a year every New Year's Day.
- The word for 20 years old, 二十歳 (hatachi), is an irregular reading. Instead of the expected ni-jū-sai, it uses a unique word rooted in ancient counting systems.
- In Japanese, it is often more polite to omit 'my' (私の) entirely when talking about your own age. Simply stating the number followed by 歳 is often seen as more natural and less self-centered than using a possessive pronoun.
Examples in context
- 私は 二十歳 です。I am twenty years old.
- 彼女は 二十一歳 です。She is twenty-one years old.
- 彼は 二十代後半 です。He is in his late twenties.
- 書類に私の年齢を記入しました。shorui ni watashi no nenrei o kinyu shimashita.I filled in my age on the document.
Example conversation
Ren and Himari are filling out a form together.
- 蓮 Renここに私の年齢を書きますか？Koko ni watashi no nenrei o kakimasu ka?Do I write my age here?
- 陽葵 Himariはい、そこに書いてください。Hai, soko ni kaite kudasai.Yes, please write it there.
- 蓮 Ren分かりました。記入します。Wakarimashita. Kinyū shimasu.I understand. I'll fill it in.
- 陽葵 Himariありがとうございます、蓮さん。Arigatō gozaimasu, Ren-san.Thank you, Ren.
