夜
[jo̞ɾɯ̟]
yoru is the Japanese word for night.
夜 refers to the entire period of darkness between sunset and sunrise.
Which one should you use?
While 夜 refers to the entire period of darkness, 晩 (ban) is often used specifically for the evening or a specific night, such as in the word konban (tonight).
How does it change in a sentence?
When you want to express that an action occurs during the night, the particle ni is frequently added to the word to form 夜に.
Did you know?
- The word yoru shares a mysterious structural link with the word for daytime, hiru. Both terms appear to utilize a specific suffix, ru, that has remained attached to these concepts of time since ancient Japanese.
- In traditional Japanese timekeeping, yoru was divided into several 'watches' called ban, which functioned as shifts for guards and laborers.
- While yoru is the general term for night, the word yoi refers specifically to the twilight transition as light fades into darkness.
Examples in context
- 夜はとても寒いです。yoru wa totemo samui desu.It is very cold at night.
- 夜に映画を見ましょう。yoru ni eiga o mimashou.Let's watch a movie at night.
- 昨日の夜はよく眠れました。kinou no yoru wa yoku nemuremashita.I slept well last night.
Example conversation
Two friends are planning when to watch a movie.
- 陽葵 Himariいつ映画を見ますか？Itsu eiga o mimasu ka?When shall we watch the movie?
- 健太 Kenta夜はどうですか？Yoru wa dō desu ka?How about at night?
- 陽葵 Himariいいですね。そうしましょう。Ii desu ne. Sō shimashou.That sounds good. Let's do that.
- 健太 Kentaでは、夜にまた連絡します。Dewa, yoru ni mata renraku shimasu.Then, I will contact you again tonight.
Sources
- Pronunciation: Wiktionary entry 夜, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries 夜, CC BY-SA 4.0.
