Learn Japanese while reading Manga with our new Manga Reader Tool!

Nihongo

Classroom

How to say 'World' or 'Society' in Japanese | 世間

Wondering how to say 'World' or 'Society' in Japanese? You're in the right place!

The Japanese word for World or Society is 'Seken', written as 世間 in Japanese.'World' or 'Society' in hiragana is せけん.

    word

    世間

    Meaning

    World, Society

    Reading

    せけん

    seken

    Kanji

    世World, Generation 間Interval, Space

    Explanation

    The Japanese noun '世間 (せけん)' refers to 'society' or 'the world' in a broad sense, often implying the social environment, public opinion, or the general community. It carries a nuance of the collective perspective or norms of people in society. For example: society is harsh「世間は厳しい」(せけんはきびしい). I don't care about what the world thinks「世間の目は気にしない」(せけんのめはきにしない). The word can also imply the boundaries of one's social circle or the realm of everyday life, as in: he is well-known in society「彼は世間に知られている」(かれはせけんにしられている).

    Part Of Speech

    noun

    Kanji JLPT

    N4

    Kanji Grade

    3

    Frequency

    1869

    Composition

    kanji

    Handwriting

Kanji in the Word 世間

This word contains 2 kanji characters:

  • kanji

    世

    Meaning

    World, Generation

  • kanji

    間

    Meaning

    Interval, Space

Words Related to 世間 Through the Kanji 世

These 13 Words contain the Kanji 世 as well.

  • word

    世界

    Meaning

    World

  • word

    世紀

    Meaning

    Century

  • word

    世

    Meaning

    World, Society

  • word

    世代

    Meaning

    Generation

  • word

    世の中

    Meaning

    World

  • word

    世話

    Meaning

    Care

  • word

    出世

    Meaning

    Success

  • word

    この世

    Meaning

    This world

  • word

    中世

    Meaning

    Middle ages

  • word

    お世辞

    Meaning

    Flattery

  • word

    世帯

    Meaning

    Household

  • word

    世論

    Meaning

    Public opinion

  • word

    近世

    Meaning

    Early modern

Words Related to 世間 Through the Kanji 間

These 31 Words contain the Kanji 間 as well.

  • word

    間

    Meaning

    Between

  • word

    時間

    Meaning

    Time

  • word

    人間

    Meaning

    Human

  • word

    年間

    Meaning

    Year

  • word

    この間

    Meaning

    Recently

  • word

    期間

    Meaning

    Period

  • word

    間違い

    Meaning

    Mistake

  • word

    週間

    Meaning

    Week

  • word

    仲間

    Meaning

    Companion

  • word

    空間

    Meaning

    Space

  • word

    瞬間

    Meaning

    Moment

  • word

    民間

    Meaning

    Private, Civilian

  • word

    間違う

    Meaning

    Mistake

  • word

    客間

    Meaning

    Guestroom

  • word

    日間

    Meaning

    Days

  • word

    時間割り

    Meaning

    Schedule

  • word

    中間

    Meaning

    Middle, Interim

  • word

    昼間

    Meaning

    Daytime

  • word

    間違える

    Meaning

    Mistake

  • word

    隙間

    Meaning

    Gap

  • word

    間に合わせる

    Meaning

    Make do

  • word

    間近

    Meaning

    Near

  • word

    間も無く

    Meaning

    Soon

  • word

    間に合う

    Meaning

    Suffice, Be in time

  • word

    間接

    Meaning

    Indirect

  • word

    洋間

    Meaning

    Western room

  • word

    手間

    Meaning

    Effort

  • word

    居間

    Meaning

    Living room

  • word

    分間

    Meaning

    Minutes

  • word

    夜間

    Meaning

    Night

  • word

    間隔

    Meaning

    Interval

Learn the Word 世間

Let's make sure you fully understand this word.

What does 'Seken' (世間) mean?

'Seken' means 'World' or 'Society' .

To help you master this word, here's an interactive lesson where you'll practice its readings and meanings.