不死身
fujimi
The English word "unkillable" is translated into Japanese as 不死身 (fujimi).
不死身 is used to describe someone or something that is unkillable or immortal. It is frequently used in the context of anime, manga or video games to describe a character or a boss that cannot be defeated or killed.
Meaning: not killable (adj)
What does it mean word for word?
The word is composed of the characters for "not" (不), "death" (死) and "body" (身), literally meaning "immortal body".
Which one should you use?
While 不死身 is the standard term, you might encounter 不滅, which is a formal term conveying invincibility or being indestructible. For informal situations, you can use 死なない to describe something that doesn't die or 絶対死なない to emphasize that something is absolutely unkillable.
How does it change in a sentence?
When using 不死身 as an adjective to modify a noun, you must add the particle の after the word, forming 不死身の.
How do you pronounce it?
fujimi
Did you know?
- The word 不死身 has a phonetic quirk where the second syllable shifts from 'shi' to 'ji'. This change is a linguistic puzzle because it happens in the middle of the word rather than at the boundary where two words typically join.
- While 不死身 is often used for video game characters, it can also be used metaphorically in daily life to describe a person who seems to survive any amount of bad luck or hardship.
- In Japanese, there is a conceptual distinction between 不死身 (an immortal body) and 不滅 (indestructibility). The latter is used for things that cannot be erased or destroyed, such as a legacy or a divine flame, rather than just a biological entity that won't die.
Examples in context
- 彼は戦場で不死身のように戦いました。He fought on the battlefield as if he were unkillable.
- あのキャラクターほんとに死なないよね。That character truly is unkillable, right?
- 俺のアバターは絶対死なないから！My avatar is unkillable, no doubt about it!
- 彼はまるで不死身のようだ。Kare wa marude fujimi no you da.He is like an unkillable man.
- このゲームのボスは不死身だ。Kono geemu no bosu wa fujimi da.The boss in this game is unkillable.
- 不死身のキャラクターが欲しい。Fujimi no kyarakutaa ga hoshii.I want an unkillable character.
Example conversation
Talking about a video game boss.
- 大翔 Hirotoこのボス、本当に不死身じゃないか？kono bosu, hontou ni fujimi janai ka?Isn't this boss seriously unkillable?
- 美咲 Misaki弱点があるはずだよ、大翔。jakuten ga aru hazu da yo, Daikyou.There must be a weakness, Daikyou.
- 大翔 Hiroto全然ダメージが入らないんだ。zenzen dameeji ga hairanai n da.He's taking no damage at all.
- 美咲 Misaki美咲が攻略法を調べてみるね。Misaki ga kouryakuhou o shirabete miru ne.I, Misaki, will look up the strategy for you.
Sources
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries 不死身, CC BY-SA 4.0.
