じゃんけん
The English phrase "stone, paper, scissors" is translated into Japanese as じゃんけん.
じゃんけん refers to the game of rock, paper, scissors itself, rather than just the individual hand gestures.
When do people say it?
When players reveal the same gesture, they shout あいこ to indicate a draw and signal that they are continuing the round.
Did you know?
- The hand gesture for 'paper' in じゃんけん is sometimes referred to as ぱー in casual conversation, while 'rock' is ぐー and 'scissors' is ちょき.
- In Japan, the rhythmic chant used to play the game is often 'じゃん、けん、ぽん!' where 'ぽん' marks the moment the hands are revealed.
- While English speakers say 'rock, paper, scissors', the Japanese name じゃんけん uses the word 'けん' which can also mean 'fist' or 'sword'.
Examples in context
- じゃんけんしよう！janken shiyou!Let's play rock-paper-scissors!
- じゃんけんで決めよう。janken de kimeyou.Let's decide with rock-paper-scissors.
- じゃんけんに負けた。janken ni maketa.I lost at rock-paper-scissors.
Example conversation
Two friends are deciding who will do the dishes.
- 結衣 Yuiじゃんけんで決めない？janken de kimenai?Shall we decide with rock, paper, scissors?
- 陽太 Yotaいいよ。じゃんけんぽん！ii yo. janken pon!Sure. Rock, paper, scissors, shoot!
- 結衣 Yuiあ、陽太が勝ったね。a, youta ga katta ne.Ah, Youta won.
- 陽太 Yotaやった！結衣、お願いね。yatta! yui, onegai ne.Yay! Yui, please do them.
Sources
- Pronunciation: Wiktionary entry じゃんけん, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
