• Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer

Japanese Particles Master

particles for perfection

  • Home
  • grammar
  • particles
  • nouns
  • verbs
  • adjectives
  • adverbs
  • translation
  • Author
Home » nouns » Kao is the Japanese word for ‘face’, explained

August 3, 2020 By Masaki Mori

Kao is the Japanese word for ‘face’, explained

What does “kao” mean in Japanese?

Native speakers say “kao” to mean ‘face’ in Japanese. Perhaps, some Japanese learners know this word as it is sometimes used in Japanese conversations. In this blog post, however, I will explain this word in detail together with example sentences. My explanations would help Japanese learners understand “kao” more clearly. Then, let’s get started!

Contents

  • Definition and meaning of “kao”
    • Example #1: how to say “face” in Japanese
    • Example #2: another usage of “kao”
  • Summary

Definition and meaning of “kao”

Let me start with the definition and meaning of “kao”.

  • kao – 顔 (かお) : a noun meaning ‘face’ in Japanese. This can also work as plural. Learn more about Japanese plural.

Native speakers use this noun normally to refer to a face or faces in Japanese. In addition, they sometimes use this to refer to a person or people representing a group.

The definition and meaning of “kao” are simple and clear, I think. Then, let me explain how to use this noun through the example sentences below.

Example #1: how to say “face” in Japanese

kanojo wa kare no kao ga suki desu – 彼女は彼の顔が好きです (かのじょはかれのかおがすきです)

She loves his face.

Below are the new words used in the example sentence.

  • kanojo – 彼女 (かのじょ) : a pronoun meaning ‘she’ in Japanese.
  • wa – は : a binding particle working as a case marker or topic marker. In the example, this works after “kanojo” to make the subject in the sentence.
  • kare – 彼 (かれ) : a pronoun meaning ‘he’ in Japanese.
  • no – の : a case particle used after a noun or pronoun to make its possessive case. In the example, this is used after “kare” to make its possessive case, “kare no”, which means ‘his’ in Japanese.
  • 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 “kare no kao” to make the object in the sentence.
  • suki – 好き (すき) : the stem part of the na-adjective, “sukina”, which means ‘favorite’ in Japanese. Native speakers, however, often use this word as an individual word to mean ‘to like’ or ‘to love’ in Japanese. In the example, this is used to mean ‘to love’.
  • desu – です : an auxiliary verb used after a noun or adjective to make it polite. Probably, this is well known as a part of Japanese desu form. In the example, this is used after “suki” to make it sound polite.

This is a typical usage of “kao”. In this example, it works together with the possessive case, “kare no”, to mean ‘his face’ in Japanese. When we want to refer to someone’s face in Japanese, this noun is a very good option.

Example #2: another usage of “kao”

kare wa nippon no kao desu – 彼は日本の顔です (かれはにっぽんのかおです)

He represents Japan.

Below are the new words used in the example sentence.

  • nippon – 日本 (にっぽん) : a noun meaning ‘Japan’ in Japanese.
  • no – の : a case particle joining two nouns. Normally, the first one can work as a modifier to describe the second. In the example, this works to join “nippon” and “kao”. The formed phrase literally means ‘a face of Japan’ in Japanese. Word orders in Japanese and English are different, but the role of this case particle is similar to that of the English preposition, “of”.

This is another typical usage of “kao”. In this example, it works to refer to the person who represents Japan. In Japanese, the noun meaning ‘face’ is sometimes used to refer to a person or people representing a group.

Summary

In this blog post, I’ve explained the definition and meaning of “kao”. And also, I’ve explained how to use it through the example sentences. Let me summarize them as follows.

  • kao – 顔 (かお) : a noun meaning ‘face’ in Japanese. This can also work as plural. Native speakers use this noun normally to refer to a face or faces in Japanese. In addition, they sometimes use this to refer to a person or people representing a group.

Hope my explanations are understandable and helpful for Japanese learners.

  • Share on Twitter Share on Twitter
  • Share on Facebook Share on Facebook
  • Share on Pinterest Share on Pinterest
  • Share on LinkedIn Share on LinkedIn
  • Share on Reddit Share on Reddit
  • Share via Email Share via Email

Filed Under: nouns

Recent Posts

  • Komorebi is the Japanese word for ‘sunlight through leaves’
  • Nikkouyoku is the Japanese word for ‘sunbathing’, explained
  • Shinrinyoku is the Japanese word for ‘forest bathing’, explained
  • Hatsutaiken is the Japanese word for ‘first experience’
  • Hatsuyuki is the Japanese word for ‘first snow of the season’

Primary Sidebar

Written by Masaki Mori

Engineer and industrial translator for more than ten years. I teach Japanese to spread the Japanese culture. I always try to explain every single new word so that Japanese learners can understand the correct meanings of example sentences. Read More…

Follow Me on Social Media

  • Instagram
  • Twitter

Learn more words by kanji groups

Kanji for bad Kanji for beauty Kanji for big Kanji for cat Kanji for child Kanji for day Kanji for devil Kanji for eye Kanji for fire Kanji for god Kanji for ground Kanji for hand Kanji for he Kanji for heart Kanji for heaven Kanji for mood Kanji for moon Kanji for mouth Kanji for night Kanji for now Kanji for one of a pair Kanji for person Kanji for rain Kanji for time Kanji for tree Kanji for week Kanji for what Kanji for woman Kanji for year

Check recent posts

  • Komorebi is the Japanese word for ‘sunlight through leaves’
  • Nikkouyoku is the Japanese word for ‘sunbathing’, explained
  • Shinrinyoku is the Japanese word for ‘forest bathing’, explained
  • Hatsutaiken is the Japanese word for ‘first experience’
  • Hatsuyuki is the Japanese word for ‘first snow of the season’

Are you still looking for something?

Footer

Pages

  • Author

Categories

  • adjectives
  • adverbs
  • grammar
  • nouns
  • particles
  • translation
  • verbs
  • vocabulary

Written by Masaki Mori

Engineer and industrial translator for more than ten years. I teach Japanese to spread the Japanese culture. Read More…

Follow Me on Social Media

  • Instagram
  • Twitter

Feed

  • RSS

Copyright © 2017–2025 Japanese Particles Master All Rights Reserved.