The Meaning of mono [物] In Japanese

物
もの
Romaji: mono N5

What does 物 mean?

Translation and Meaning

thing, object, matter

Definition

物 means “thing” or “object” in Japanese. It functions as a broad, general noun used to refer to tangible items, possessions, phenomena, events or categories of items and can cover both concrete objects and abstract matters depending on context.

Type

noun (名詞, meishi)

Stroke Order

Meanings

  • Goods or merchandise, referring to items for sale or trade rather than a single object.
  • An affair, matter, or situation when used to talk about issues or abstract topics.
  • Organisms or living creatures when combined in compound words that denote beings.
  • As a suffix (‑もの) it marks a person characterized by a trait or habit rather than a physical object.
  • In some contexts it conveys emotional emphasis or a subjective evaluation of an item or situation.

Etymology

The character 物 was borrowed from Chinese; its Sino-Japanese on readings reflect historical Chinese pronunciations while the native kun reading (mono) is an Old Japanese lexical item that was paired with the character for its semantic match rather than derived from the Chinese sound.

Origin

The concept and the native word (mono) appear in early Japanese texts and court literature; the kanji 物 arrived with Chinese writing and was used from classical periods to record both material culture and abstract notions, becoming integrated into both everyday speech and written registers.

Composition

The kanji 物 pairs a semantic component (left) derived from 牜/牛 (cattle/animal) with the phonetic component on the right 勿; the left suggests a link to tangible goods or animals while the right originally supplies sound information, together forming the written sign associated with items and material matters.

Usage

Used broadly in everyday and written Japanese to name objects, possessions, and matters; appears as a standalone noun in casual and formal speech, as a suffix to form nouns describing people or things, and with on readings in technical or compound terms; register varies by compound and collocation rather than by the character itself.
💡 Tips
Visualize an ox (left part of the kanji) carrying random objects on its back to remember that (mono) refers to items or things.

Variations

  • こと (koto) – intangible thing, matter
  • 品 (しな, shina) – article, goods, item
  • 物品 (ぶっぴん, buppin) – articles, merchandise
  • 者 (もの, mono) – person (in some usages where 物 appears as a suffix indicating a person)

Example Phrases

  • 展覽会で 実物を 触って サイズを 確かめる。
    Tenrankai de jitsubutsu o sawatte saizu o tashikameru.
    At the exhibition, I touch the real object to check its size.
    Lista:
    • 展覧会で (tenrankai de) – at the exhibition
    • 実物を (jitsubutsu o) – the real object
    • 触って (sawatte) – touching
    • サイズを (saizu o) – size
    • 確かめる (tashikameru) – to check
    「実物」 means the real object; here it is the object being touched to compare its size.
  • 友人の嗜好を尊重して、誕生日の贈り物を慎重に選ぶ。
    Tomodachi no shikou o sonchou shite, tanjoubi no okurimono o shinchou ni erabu.
    I respect my friend’s preferences and carefully choose a birthday gift.
    Lista:
    • 友人の (tomodachi no) – friend’s
    • 嗜好を (shikou o) – preference (object marker)
    • 尊重して (sonchou shite) – respecting
    • 誕生日の (tanjoubi no) – birthday
    • 贈り物を (okurimono o) – gift (object marker)
    • 慎重に (shinchou ni) – carefully
    • 選ぶ (erabu) – to choose
    Core meaning: 「嗜好」 means personal taste or preference; here it is the object of 尊重する, shown with の (友人の嗜好).
  • 今、駅で友達に荷物を預ける。
    Ima, eki de tomodachi ni nimotsu o azukeru.
    I’m dropping off my luggage with a friend at the station now.
    Lista:
    • 今 (Ima) – now
    • 駅で (eki de) – at the station
    • 友達に (tomodachi ni) – to a friend
    • 荷物を (nimotsu o) – luggage
    • 預ける (azukeru) – to entrust/leave
    Core grammar: here 「預ける」 means to entrust/leave (something) with someone; pattern: [person]に [thing]を預ける, as in 友達に荷物を預ける.
  • 今日は曇りで、洗濯物が乾かず、困った。
    Kyou wa kumori de, sentakumono ga kawakazu, komatta.
    It’s cloudy today, and the laundry won’t dry, which is a problem.
    Lista:
    • 今日は (kyou wa) – today
    • 曇り (kumori) – cloudiness / overcast
    • で (de) – (state marker)
    • 洗濯物 (sentakumono) – laundry
    • が (ga) – subject marker
    • 乾かず (kawakazu) – won’t dry
    • 困った (komatta) – I am troubled
    In this sentence, 「曇り」 is used as a noun describing the weather state, with で linking to the rest of the clause to mean it is cloudy today.
  • 洗濯物をベランダで干す。
    Sentakumono o beranda de hosu.
    I hang the laundry on the balcony to dry.
    Lista:
    • 洗濯物 (sentakumono) – laundry
    • を (o) – object marker
    • ベランダ (beranda) – balcony
    • で (de) – location marker
    • 干す (hosu) – to dry / to hang out to dry
    Here 「干す」 means to dry or hang out to dry; the sentence uses 「洗濯物」をベランダで干す, with を marking the object and で indicating location.
物