私の赤ちゃん
watashi no akachan
The English phrase "my baby" is translated into Japanese as 私の赤ちゃん (watashi no akachan).
This phrase is used to refer to one's own infant child. The word 赤ちゃん (baby) is an affectionate term originally derived from the word for red, referring to the red skin of a newborn.
What does it mean word for word?
The phrase is composed of watashi (I/me), the possessive particle no and akachan (baby).
Is there a formal and an informal way to say it?
私の赤ちゃん is a standard, polite way to refer to one's own infant.
How does it change in a sentence?
In natural conversation, Japanese speakers often replace watashi no with うちの to refer to things belonging to their own household or family, such as in the phrase うちの赤ちゃん (lit. our baby).
How do you pronounce it?
watashi no akachan
Did you know?
- While you might use 'my baby' as a romantic term of endearment in English, using 私の赤ちゃん to address a partner in Japanese would sound extremely strange and literal.
- In some traditional beliefs, Japanese parents avoided giving a baby a formal name for a short period to protect the child from evil spirits, relying on generic terms like 赤ちゃん.
- While 赤ちゃん refers to infants, Japanese has a separate word 乳児 (nyūji) used strictly in medical or legal contexts to describe the same age group.
Examples in context
- この子が私の赤ちゃんなんだよ。This is my baby.This sentence is useful for identifying 私の赤ちゃん.Tatoeba #2060599 by bunbuku, translation #1898108 by CK
- 私の赤ちゃんはまだ一ヶ月です。Watashi no akachan wa mada ikkagetsu desu.My baby is only one month old.
Example conversation
Himarī and Kenta are talking about the newborn's health.
- 陽葵 Himari私の赤ちゃんは、もうミルクを飲んだよ。Watashi no akachan wa, mō miruku o nonda yo.My baby already drank the milk.
- 健太 Kentaそれはよかったね。Sore wa yokatta ne.That's good to hear.
- 陽葵 Himari今はゆっくり寝ているよ。Ima wa yukkuri nete iru yo.Now the baby is sleeping peacefully.
- 健太 Kenta本当に可愛いね。Hontō ni kawaii ne.They really are cute.
Sources
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
