Memory in Japanese: kioku or omoide, explained in detail

How to say “memory” in Japanese

Japanese native speakers would say “kioku”. It is the Japanese word for ‘memory’. In this blog post, I will explain it in detail based on its kanji expression. And also, I will explain its verb form which means ‘to remember’ in Japanese. In the latter part of this post, I will compare “kioku” and “omoide” to explain their difference. Let’s get started!

Contents

• Definition and meaning of “kioku”
• Kanji characters used in “kioku”
• Example #1: how to say “memory” in Japanese
• Definition and meaning of “kioku suru”
• Example #2: how to use “kioku suru”
• Difference between “kioku” and “omoide”
• Summary

Definition and meaning of “kioku”

First of all, let me start with the definition and meaning of “kioku”.

• kioku – 記憶 (きおく) : a noun meaning ‘memory’ in Japanese. Depending on context, it can also be used as a plural noun meaning ‘memories’ in Japanese.

In the Japanese language, the border between singular and plural nouns is very ambiguous. Especially in conversations, therefore, many nouns can be used in both ways. “Kioku” is one of them. It can be used as both a singular and a plural.

To understand “kioku” a bit more clearly, let me explain its kanji characters in detail, one by one.

Kanji characters used in “kioku”

Below are the ones.

• 記 – a kanji character widely used in Japanese words related to the act of writing or recording.
• 憶 – a kanji character used in Japanese words related to the act of remembering or memorizing.

From these two kanji characters, we can understand that “kioku” literally means recording and remembering. This concept formed by its kanji seems to be in line with its meanings.

Then, let me explain how to use “kioku” through the example sentence below.

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

Below are new words used in the example sentence.

• watashi – 私 (わたし) : a pronoun meaning ‘I’ in Japanese.
• no – の : a case particle put after a noun or pronoun to make its possessive case. In the example, it is put after the pronoun, “watashi”, to make its possessive case, “watashi no”, which means ‘my’ in Japanese. Learn more about “watashi no”.
• wa – は : a binding particle working as a case marker or topic marker. In the example, it is put after the noun, “kioku”, to make the subject word in the sentence.
• aimai – 曖昧 (あいまい) : one conjugation of the na-adjective, “aimaina”, which means ‘vague’ or ‘ambiguous’ in Japanese. In the example, it has been conjugated for a better connection with its following word.
• desu – です : an auxiliary verb put after a noun or adjective to make it polite. Probably, it is well known for a part of Japanese desu form. In the example, it is put after the conjugated na-adjective, “aimai”, to make it sound polite.

This is a typical usage of “kioku”. It is quite often used together with a possessive case word like “watashi no” in order to mean “someone’s memory” in Japanese. This usage would be worth knowing, I think.

In this example, “kioku” is used as a noun. But, in reality, Japanese native speakers quite often use its verb form which means ‘to remember’ in Japanese. Let me explain it as follows.

Definition and meaning of “kioku suru”

Below are the definition and meaning of the verb form of “kioku”.

• kioku suru – 記憶する (きおくする) : a verb meaning ‘to remember’ in Japanese. Depending on the situation and context, it can also mean ‘to learn’.

As you can see here, “suru” is just added at the end of “kioku”. Normally, “suru” is used as a verb to mean ‘to do’, ‘to perform’, or some such in Japanese. However, when it is put after a noun, it can work to make a verb form of its prior noun. In the Japanese language, many nouns can be changed to their verb forms with help of “suru”. “Kioku” is one of them. Thanks to the help of “suru”, it is changed to its verb form.

Then, let me explain how to use this verb through the example sentence below.

Example #2: how to use “kioku suru”

Below are new words used in the example sentence.

• kanojo – 彼女 (かのじょ) : a noun meaning ‘she’ in Japanese.
• kare – 彼 (かれ) : a pronoun meaning ‘he’ in Japanese.
• no – の : the same as explained in the last example. In this example, it is put after the pronoun, “kare”, to make its possessive case, “kare no”, which means ‘his’ in Japanese.
• denwa – 電話 (でんわ) : a noun meaning ‘phone’ in Japanese. Learn more about “denwa”.
• bangou – 番号 (ばんごう) : a noun meaning ‘number’ in Japanese. It is often used together with “denwa” to mean ‘phone number’ in Japanese.
• wo – を : a case particle used to make the object word in a sentence. In the example, it is put after the noun phrase, “denwa bangou”, to make the object word in the sentence. It is written as “wo”, but its actual pronunciation is “o”.
• kioku shi – 記憶し (きおくし) : one conjugation of the verb, “kioku suru”. Basically, its conjugations are subjected to those of “suru”. So, we can focus only on its latter part. In the example, it has been conjugated for a better connection with its following word.
• ta – た : an auxiliary verb put after a verb, adjective, or auxiliary verb to make its past tense. Probably, it is well known for a part of Japanese ta form. In the example, it is put after the conjugated verb, “kioku shi”, to make its past tense.

This is a typical usage of “kioku suru”. In this example, it is used to mean ‘to remember’. Depending on the situation and context, however, it can also mean ‘to learn’ in Japanese. Sometimes, remembering is considered as a part of learning.

So far, I’ve explained “kioku”, its verb form, and how to use them through the example sentences. Sometimes, “kioku” and its similar word, “omoide”, may be confused. So, let me explain the difference between “kioku” and “omoide”.

Difference between “kioku” and “omoide”

Below are the definition and meaning of “omoide”.

• omoide – 思い出 (おもいで) : a noun meaning ‘memory’. It can also be used as a plural noun.

It looks the same as “kioku”. So, what is the difference?

In most cases, “kioku” means just “one’s own memory”. On the other hand, “omoide” tends to mean ‘memory shared with someone else’. So, when we want talk about a memory shared with someone else, we should use “omoide” rather than “kioku”. In addition, “omoide” has a more nostalgic nuance. So, it is suitable for a nostalgic memory (or memories).

To see the difference between “kioku” and “omoide” a bit more clearly, let me compare the following two sentences.

Unfortunately, both translations are the same. So, we cannot see the difference through the English language. In Japanese, while the first sentence implies ‘his/her own memory has become vague’, the second one could mean ‘he/she lost a part of his/her nostalgic memory which had been shared with someone else’. Of course, depending on the situation and context, the first one can also mean the same thing as the second one does. But, the first one still focuses on his/her own memory.

Summary

In this blog post, I’ve explained “kioku” in detail based on its kanji expression. And also, I’ve explained its verb form and the similar word, “omoide”. Let me summarize them as follows.

• kioku – 記憶 (きおく) : a noun meaning ‘memory’ in Japanese. It can also be used as a plural noun. These two kanji character literally mean recording and remembering. This concept seems to be in line with its meaning.
• kioku suru – 記憶する (きおくする) : a verb meaning ‘to remember’ or ‘to learn’ in Japanese. Its conjugations are basically subjected to those of “suru”.
• omoide – 思い出 (おもいで) : a noun meaning ‘memory’. It can also be used as a plural noun. It tends to mean a nostalgic memory shared with someone else.

Hope my explanations are understandable and helpful for Japanese learners.