How to Say "Ransom" in Japanese

身代金

minoshirokin[mʲino̞ɕiɾo̞kʲĩɴ]

The English word ransom is translated into Japanese as 身代金 (minoshirokin).

身代金 is a noun used to describe money paid for the freeing of a hostage.

Meaning: money paid for the freeing of a hostage (noun)

What does it mean word for word?

The word is composed of three parts: 身 (body), 代 (substitute or replacement) and 金 (money).

minoshirokin

The concept of 身代わり (migawari) linked to 身代金 can refer to a spiritual substitute, such as a doll used to absorb bad luck instead of a person.
The middle component 代 (shiro) is a special reading of the character meaning 'substitute'. While it is usually read as 'dai', in the context of 身代金, it undergoes a specific phonetic change to become 'shiro'.
While 身代金 refers to ransom for people, Japanese uses different terms for 'ransom' when referring to the retrieval of stolen property or objects.

そのハイジャック犯は２００万ドルの身代金を要求した。
The hijacker demanded a ransom of two million dollars.
This sentence is useful for seeing how to express a specific amount of ransom using 身代金.
Tatoeba #212747 by bunbuku, translation #50030 by Eldad
誘拐犯は身代金を要求した。
The kidnapper demanded ransom.
This sentence shows a general way to describe a kidnapper demanding 身代金.
Wiktionary
身代金を支払えば、人質が無事に帰って来ます。
If you pay the ransom, the hostage will safely return.
暴力団の要求金は通常高額です。
Ransoms demanded by criminal organizations are usually high.
身代金として１０万円を要求された。
I was asked for a ransom of 100,000 yen.

Two people are discussing a suspense movie they just watched.

蓮 Ren

結衣、あの映画の結末はどう思う？
Yui, ano eiga no ketsumatsu wa dō omou?
Yui, what did you think of the end of that movie?
結衣 Yui

身代金を払ったのに助からなかったのは悲しすぎるよ。
Miyo-daikin o haratta noni tasakaranakatta no wa kanashisugiru yo.
It's too sad that they didn't get saved even after paying the ransom.
蓮 Ren

確かに。犯人が残酷すぎたな。
Tashika ni. Hannin ga zankoku sugita na.
True. The criminal was too cruel.
結衣 Yui

蓮、次はもっと明るい映画を見よう。
Ren, tsugi wa motto akarui eiga o miyō.
Ren, let's watch a brighter movie next time.

Sources

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