What does “fushigi” mean in Japanese?
Native speakers say “fushigi” to mean ‘wonder’ or ‘mystery’ in Japanese. In this blog post, I will explain this word in detail based on its origin. And also, I will explain how to use it through example sentences. Let’s get started!
Contents
Definition and meanings of “fushigi”
Let me start with the definition and meanings of “fushigi”.
- fushigi – 不思議 (ふしぎ) : a noun meaning ‘wonder’ or ‘mystery’ in Japanese. This can also work as a plural noun. Learn more about Japanese plural.
Its definition and meanings are simple and clear, I think. To understand this word more clearly, however, let me explain its original expression in detail.
Origin of “fushigi”
To tell the truth, “fushigi” is considered as the shortened form of the Buddhism word, “fukashigi”. This word can be broken down into the following two parts:
- fuka – 不可 (ふか) : a commonly-used prefix to add the meaning of ‘not possible’.
- shigi – 思議 (しぎ) : a noun meaning ‘conjecture’.
From these two components, we can understand that “fukashigi” means ‘guessing is not possible’ or just ‘cannot guess’. The shortened version, “fushigi”, is also based on the same kanji concept. This concept is not completely in line with the meanings, but still very close, I think. In the Japanese language, “wonder” and “mystery” are considered as things we cannot guess.
Then, let me explain how to use “fushigi” through the example sentences below.
Example #1: how to say “wonder” in Japanese
tsuki wa fushigi desu – 月は不思議です (つきはふしぎです)
The moon is a wonder (to me).
Below are the new words used in the example sentence.
- tsuki – 月 (つき) : a noun meaning ‘the moon’ in Japanese.
- wa – は : a binding particle working as a case marker or topic marker. In the example, this is used after “tsuki” to make the subject word in the sentence.
- desu – です : an auxiliary verb used after a noun or adjective to make it sound polite. Probably this is well known as a part of Japanese desu form. In the example, this is used after “fushigi” to make it sound polite.
This is a typical usage of “fushigi”. When we want to say “wonder” in Japanese, this word would be the best choice.
Example #2: how to say “the seven wonders” in Japanese
korera ga sekai no nana fushigi desu – これらが世界の七不思議です (これらがせかいのななふしぎです)
These are the seven wonders of the world.
Below are the new words used in the example sentence.
- korera – これら : a demonstrative pronoun meaning ‘these’ or ‘they’ in Japanese. This can be considered as the plural form of “kore” which Japanese people use to refer to a thing close to them.
- ga – が : a case particle used to make the subject word or the object word in a sentence. In the example, this is used after “korera” to make the subject word in the sentence.
- sekai – 世界 (せかい) : a noun meaning ‘world’ in Japanese.
- no – の : a case particle used to join two nouns. Normally the preceding noun works to modify the meaning of the following noun. In the example, this joins “sekai” and “nana fushigi”. The formed phrase literally means ‘the seven wonders of the world’. Word orders in Japanese and English are different, but the role of this particle is similar to that of “of”.
- nana – 七 (なな) : a numeral meaning ‘seven’ in Japanese. In the example, this is used before “fushigi” to say ‘the seven wonders’ in Japanese.
This is another typical usage of “fushigi”. In this example, it works as a part of the commonly-used expression, “nana fushigi”, which means ‘seven wonders’ in Japanese.
Summary
In this blog post, I’ve explained “fushigi” in detail based on its original word. And I’ve explained how to use it through the example sentences. Let me summarize them as follows.
- fushigi – 不思議 (ふしぎ) : a noun meaning ‘wonder’ or ‘mystery’ in Japanese. This can also work as a plural noun. This word originally came from the Buddhism word, “fukashigi”, of which components mean ‘guessing is not possible’. When we want to say “wonder” in Japanese, this word would be the best choice.
Hope my explanations are understandable and helpful for Japanese learners.
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