死
[ɕi]
shi is the Japanese word for death.
死 is a noun meaning death. It is used in compound words to denote death or related concepts.
How do you pronounce it?
The romanization is.
Did you know?
- The sound shi is shared with the word for 'poem', meaning a sentence about a 'beautiful shi' could be misinterpreted as 'beautiful death' without context.
- In Japanese culture, the number four is often avoided because its pronunciation shi is a homophone for 'death'. This is why many buildings or products intentionally omit the number four.
- In certain contexts, the word for death shares an ancient phonetic root with the verb saru, meaning 'to go' or 'to depart'.
Examples in context
- 死は誰にでも訪れる。shi wa dare ni demo otozureru.Death comes to everyone.
- 彼は死を恐れていない。kare wa shi o osorete inai.He is not afraid of death.
- 死に関する本を読んだ。shi ni kansuru hon o yonda.I read a book about death.
Example conversation
Two siblings are discussing a serious movie they just watched.
- 陽太 Yotaあの映画は死を扱っていたね。ano eiga wa shi o atsukatte ita ne.That movie dealt with death, didn't it?
- 陽葵 Himariとても重いテーマだったよ。totemo omoi tēma datta yo.It was a very heavy theme.
- 陽太 Yota陽葵は怖くなかった？Himari wa kowakunakatta?Himari, weren't you scared?
- 陽葵 Himari少し怖かったけど、考えさせられたよ。sukoshi kowakatta kedo, kangaesaserareta yo.It was a little scary, but it made me think.
Sources
- Pronunciation: Wiktionary entry 死, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries 死, CC BY-SA 4.0.
