Mimi is the Japanese word for ‘ear’, explained

What does “mimi” mean in Japanese?

Native speakers say “mimi” to mean ‘ear’ or ‘ears’ in Japanese. Very simple, I think. In this blog post, however, I will explain its definition, meaning, and kanji expression. And also, I will explain how to use it through example sentences. My explanations would help Japanese learners to use “mimi” more properly. Then, let’s get started!

Contents

• Definition and meaning of “mimi”
  • Example #1: how to say “ears” in Japanese
  • Example #2: how to use “mimi” as a metaphor
• Summary

Definition and meaning of “mimi”

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

• mimi – 耳 (みみ) : a noun meaning ‘ear’ in Japanese. This can also work as a plural noun meaning ‘ears’. Learn more about Japanese plural.

Native speakers normally use this noun to mean ‘ear’ or ‘ears’ in Japanese. In addition to this very basic usage, they occasionally use this as a metaphor for something far from its center – its edge. Actually, ears are far from the center of a face, so this usage is still understandable, I think.

The kanji character of “mimi” originally came from the shape of an ear. Honestly, I’m not sure if it really looks so, but this is the origin of this kanji.

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

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

Below are the new words used in the example sentence.

• kare – 彼 (かれ) : a pronoun meaning ‘he’ in Japanese.
• wa – は : a binding particle working as a case marker or topic marker. In the example, this works after “kare” to make the subject word in the sentence.
• watashi – 私 (わたし) : a pronoun meaning ‘I’ 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 “watashi” to make its possessive case, “watashi no“, which means ‘my’ 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 “watashi no mimi” to make the object in the sentence.
• suki – 好き (すき) : one conjugation of the na-adjective, “sukina”, which means ‘favorite’ in Japanese. In reality, however, native speakers quite often use this as an individual word to mean ‘to like’ or ‘to love’ in Japanese. Actually, in the example, this works 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 “mimi”. In the example, it works as a part of the noun phrase, “watashi no mimi”, which means ‘my ears’ in Japanese. When we want to say “ear” or “ears” in Japanese, this noun is the best choice.

Example #2: how to use “mimi” as a metaphor

Next, let me explain how to use “mimi” as a metaphor for something far from its center.

Below are the new words used in the example sentence.

• pan – パン (ぱん) : a noun meaning ‘bread’ in Japanese.
• no – の : a case particle used to join two nouns. Normally, the first one can work as a modifier to describe the second. In the example, this is used to join “pan” and “mimi”. The formed phrase literally means ‘the ears of bread’ in Japanese, it has been translated as just “bread crusts”, though. Word orders in Japanese and English are different, but the role of this case particle is very similar to that of “of”. “No” used in the last example can be considered as the special use case of this type of “no”.

This is another typical usage of “mimi”. In this example, it works as a metaphor for bread crusts which are far from the center of bread. “Pan no mimi” is a Japanese commonly-used expression for ‘bread crusts’, so worth knowing, I think.

Summary

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

• mimi – 耳 (みみ) : a noun meaning ‘ear’ in Japanese. This can also work as a plural noun meaning ‘ears’. Native speakers normally use this noun to mean ‘ear’ or ‘ears’ in Japanese. In addition to this very basic usage, they occasionally use this as a metaphor for something far from its center – its edge. Actually, ears are far from the center of a face, so this usage is still understandable, I think.

Hope my explanations are understandable and helpful for Japanese learners.