japanese · 2
transportation vocabulary
1 · Vehicles
| Kanji | Hiragana | Romaji | English | Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 電車 | でんしゃ | densha | train | lit. "electric vehicle" · most common way to get around |
| 新幹線 | しんかんせん | shinkansen | bullet train | lit. "new trunk line" · can exceed 320 km/h |
| 地下鉄 | ちかてつ | chikatetsu | subway | lit. "underground iron" |
| バス | バス | basu | bus | katakana loanword from English |
| タクシー | タクシー | takushii | taxi | katakana loanword · long "shii" held |
| 自転車 | じてんしゃ | jitensha | bicycle | lit. "self-turning vehicle" |
| オートバイ | オートバイ | ootobai | motorcycle | from English "autobike" |
| 車 | くるま | kuruma | car | also means "wheel" or "vehicle" in general |
| 飛行機 | ひこうき | hikouki | airplane | lit. "flying machine" |
| 船 | ふね | fune | ship, boat | covers all sizes of watercraft |
| フェリー | フェリー | ferii | ferry | katakana loanword · long "ii" held |
2 · Places & Infrastructure
| Kanji | Hiragana | Romaji | English | Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 駅 | えき | eki | station | train/subway station |
| 空港 | くうこう | kuukou | airport | long "uu" and "ou" — both held |
| 港 | みなと | minato | port, harbor | |
| バス停 | バスてい | basu tei | bus stop | 停 (tei) = stop/halt |
| 道 | みち | michi | road, path, way | also used figuratively for a "way of life" |
| 橋 | はし | hashi | bridge | same reading as 箸 (chopsticks) — context matters |
| 交差点 | こうさてん | kousaten | intersection | lit. "crossing point" |
| 駐車場 | ちゅうしゃじょう | chuushajou | parking lot | lit. "stopped-vehicle place" |
3 · Travel Actions
| Kanji | Hiragana | Romaji | English | Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 乗る | のる | noru | to ride, to board | u-verb · used for all vehicles |
| 降りる | おりる | oriru | to get off, to exit | ru-verb · opposite of 乗る |
| 乗り換える | のりかえる | norikaeru | to transfer, to change trains | ru-verb · essential for complex train routes |
| 出発する | しゅっぱつする | shuppatsu suru | to depart | suru-verb · double "pp" — pause before it |
| 到着する | とうちゃくする | touchaku suru | to arrive | suru-verb · long "ou" — held |
| 運転する | うんてんする | unten suru | to drive | suru-verb |
| 歩く | あるく | aruku | to walk | u-verb |
4 · Tickets & Directions
| Kanji | Hiragana | Romaji | English | Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 切符 | きっぷ | kippu | ticket | double "pp" — pause before it |
| 定期券 | ていきけん | teikiken | commuter pass | monthly/annual transit pass |
| 料金 | りょうきん | ryoukin | fare, fee | long "ou" — held |
| 右 | みぎ | migi | right | direction |
| 左 | ひだり | hidari | left | direction |
| まっすぐ | まっすぐ | massugu | straight ahead | double "ss" — held pause |
| 北 | きた | kita | north | |
| 南 | みなみ | minami | south | |
| 東 | ひがし | higashi | east | |
| 西 | にし | nishi | west |