ワイバーン
waibān[β̞a̠ibã̠ːɴ]
The English word wyvern is translated into Japanese as ワイバーン (waibān) or 飛竜.
Meaning: mythical dragon-like creature (noun)
Ways to say it
| Japanese | Romanization (Wiktionary) | IPA |
|---|---|---|
| ワイバーン | waibān | [β̞a̠ibã̠ːɴ] (narrow) |
| 飛竜 | hiryū | [çiɾʲɨː] (narrow) [çiɾʲo̞ː] (narrow) |
The term refers to a mythical dragon-like creature.
What does it mean word for word?
The form 飛竜 (hiryū) literally translates to 'flying dragon'.
Which one should you use?
The katakana form ワイバーン (waibān) is a loanword specifically referring to the Western mythological creature, whereas 飛竜 (hiryū) is a more general descriptive term for a flying dragon.
How do you pronounce it?
waibān
Did you know?
- In Japanese pop culture, ワイバーン (waibān) is frequently depicted as a mindless animal, whereas ドラゴン (doragon) is often a sentient being capable of human speech.
- The kanji 竜 used in 飛竜 (hiryū) is traditionally associated with water and weather in Japan, which contradicts the fire-breathing image of the Western 'wyvern'.
- The word 飛竜 (hiryū) appears in historical Japanese texts to describe auspicious omens, whereas ワイバーン (waibān) only appears in modern fantasy contexts.
Examples in context
- 私は竜種としてのワイバーンについて研究しています。I am studying wyverns as a dragon species.
- ゲームの中でワイバーンを倒すのは難しいです。It's difficult to defeat wyverns in the game.
- 物語にはワイバーンが登場します。Monogatari ni wa waibān ga tōjō shimasu.A wyvern appears in the story.
- そのワイバーンはとても強そうです。Sono waibān wa totemo tsuyosō desu.That wyvern looks very strong.
- ワイバーンの絵を描いてみました。Waibān no e o kaite mimashita.I tried drawing a picture of a wyvern.
Example conversation
Kenta and Misaki are playing a fantasy video game.
- 美咲 Misakiあそこに大きなワイバーンがいます！Asoko ni ōkina waibān ga imasu!There is a huge wyvern over there!
- 健太 Kenta本当だ、すごく強そうだね。Hontō da, sugoku tsuyosō da ne.You're right, it looks really strong.
- 美咲 Misaki健太、一緒に戦おう！Kenta, issho ni tatakaō!Kenta, let's fight it together!
- 健太 Kentaいいよ、よし行こう！Ii yo, yoshi ikō!Okay, let's go!
Sources
- Wiktionary, “wyvern” translations and entries ワイバーン, 飛竜, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
