お腹
onaka[o̞na̠ka̠]
お腹 (onaka) is the Japanese word for stomach.
お腹 translates to stomach in English. To say you are hungry, the standard phrase is お腹が空いた (onaka ga suita), which literally means "the stomach has become empty".
What does it mean word for word?
The word お腹 consists of the polite prefix お and naka (meaning inside/middle), literally meaning "the inside".
How does it change in a sentence?
お腹 is a noun and does not change its form based on whether the speaker is male or female.
How do you pronounce it?
onaka
Did you know?
- In Japanese culture, the belly is traditionally viewed as the center of emotion and willpower, similar to how English speakers use the 'heart'.
- The term お腹 was originally developed as 'nyōbō kotoba', a refined language used by court women to avoid the more blunt or crude sound of the word 腹 (hara).
- While お腹 is the standard word for stomach, the root word hara is used in many idioms to describe a person's true intentions or character.
Examples in context
- お腹が空いています。I'm hungry.
- おなかがすいています。I'm feeling hungry.
- お腹すいた！何か食べよう。I'm hungry! Let's eat something.
- おなかすきましたね、何か食べましょう。You must be hungry, let's eat something.
- お腹が空きました。onaka ga sukimashita.I am hungry.
- お腹が痛いです。onaka ga itai desu.My stomach hurts.
Example conversation
Misaki and Kenta are deciding what to eat for lunch.
- 健太 Kenta美咲、お腹空いてない？Misaki, onaka suitenai?Misaki, aren't you hungry?
- 美咲 Misakiうん、すごくお腹が空いたよ。Un, sugoku onaka ga suita yo.Yeah, I am very hungry.
- 健太 Kentaじゃあ、何か食べに行こう。Jaa, nanika tabe ni ikou.Then, let's go eat something.
- 美咲 Misaki賛成！何を食べようか？Sansei! Nani o tabeyou ka?Agreed! What shall we eat?
Sources
- Pronunciation: Wiktionary entry お腹, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries お腹, CC BY-SA 4.0.
