がくせい
gakuseinoun
In hiragana, "student" is がくせい (gakusei). It is the everyday word, and it is used most for university students and for students in general. It is also called せいと (seito) and だいがくせい (daigakusei).
Meaning: a student (noun)
Ways to say it
| Japanese | Romanization | Note |
|---|---|---|
| がくせい | gakusei | noun |
| せいと | seito | noun, school pupil |
| だいがくせい | daigakusei | university student |
You can state your status simply: わたしはがくせいです (watashi wa gakusei desu) means I am a student. Add a level to be exact, such as だいがくせい (daigakusei), a university student.
Which one should you use?
せいと (seito) usually means a pupil in junior or senior high school, and teachers often use it for their own class. Younger children are called じどう (jidō) in formal school language.
Did you know?
- A junior high student is a ちゅうがくせい (chūgakusei) and a high school student is a こうこうせい (kōkōsei).
Examples in context
- わたしはがくせいです。Watashi wa gakusei desu.I am a student.
- かれはだいがくせいです。Kare wa daigakusei desu.He is a university student.
- このクラスのせいとはさんじゅうにんです。Kono kurasu no seito wa sanjūnin desu.This class has thirty pupils.
Example conversation
Mao meets a new neighbor, Mr. Tanaka, in the hallway of her apartment building.
- Mr. Tanakaおしごとはなにをしていますか。Oshigoto wa nani o shite imasu ka.What do you do for work?
- Maoまだがくせいです。Mada gakusei desu.I am still a student.
- Mr. Tanakaそうですか。がんばってください。Sō desu ka. Ganbatte kudasai.I see. Good luck with it.
