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How to say 'Insect' in Japanese | 虫

Wondering how to say 'Insect' in Japanese? You're in the right place!

The Japanese word for Insect is 'Mushi', written as 虫 in Japanese.'Insect' in hiragana is むし.

    word

    Meaning

    Insect

    Reading

    むし

    mushi

    Kanji

    Insect

    Explanation

    The Japanese noun '虫 (むし)' primarily means 'insect'. It refers to small creatures like bugs, beetles, or worms. However, it can also be used metaphorically to describe a gut feeling or intuition, as in '虫の知らせ (むしのしらせ)' (a premonition). Example sentences: There is an insect on the leaf「葉っぱに虫がいる」(はっぱにむしがいる). I have a bad feeling about this「虫の知らせで嫌な予感がする」(むしのしらせでいやなよかんがする). Note that '虫' is often used in compound words, such as '蝶々 (ちょうちょう)' (butterfly) or '蜂 (はち)' (bee).

    Part Of Speech

    noun

    Kanji JLPT

    N2

    Kanji Grade

    1

    Frequency

    2506

    Composition

    kanji

    Handwriting

Kanji in the Word

This word contains 1 kanji character:

  • kanji

    Meaning

    Insect

Words Related to Through the Kanji

This Word contains the Kanji 虫 as well.

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What does 'Mushi' (虫) mean?

'Mushi' means 'Insect' .

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