Present in Japanese: purezento, okurimono or omiyage, explained

How to say “present” in Japanese

Japanese native speakers would say “purezento”. It is the Japanese English word for ‘present’, which originally came from the English word, “present”. In this blog post, I will explain it and how to use it through an example sentence. And also, I will explain how it is different from the two similar words: “okurimono” and “omiyage”. Let’s get started!

Contents

• Definition and meaning of “purezento”
• Example: how to say “I have a present for you” in Japanese
• Definition and meaning of “okurimono”
• Definition and meaning of “omiyage”
• Summary

Definition and meaning of “purezento”

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

• purezento – プレゼント (ぷれぜんと) : a noun meaning ‘present’ in Japanese. Depending on the situation, it can also be used as a plural noun meaning ‘presents’.

In the Japanese language, the border between singular and plural nouns is very ambiguous. So, many nouns can be used in both ways. “Purezento” is one of them. It can be used as both a singular and a plural. Learn more about Japanese plural.

Normally, words imported from overseas tend to be written in katakana. As I mentioned above, “purezento” is a Japanese English word which originally came from the English word, “present”. So, it is usually written in katakana.

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

Example: how to say “I have a present for you” in Japanese

Below are new words used in the example sentence.

• anata – あなた : a pronoun meaning ‘you’ in Japanese. It can sound a bit weird to the Japanese, so we need to be careful with its use. Learn more about “anata” through “anata wa”.
• ni – に : a case particle put after a noun or pronoun to indicate a particular place to which someone or something goes. Based on this concept, in this example, “ni” is put after the pronoun, “anata”, to indicate where “purezento” goes.
• ga – が : a case particle used to make the subject word or the object word in a sentence. In the example, it is put after the noun, “purezento”, to make the subject word in the sentence.
• ari – あり : one conjugation of the verb, “aru”, which means ‘to be’, ‘to exist’, or ‘to present’ in Japanese. In the example, it has been conjugated for a better connection with its following word.
• masu – ます : an auxiliary verb put after a verb to make it polite. Probably, it is well known for a part of Japanese masu form. In this example, it is put after the conjugated verb, “ari”, to make it sound polite.

This is a typical usage of “purezento”. The Japanese verb, “aru”, is normally used to mean ‘to be’, ‘to exist’, or ‘to present’ in Japanese, but often translated into English as “to have”. Actually, the Japanese example sentence above has been translated as “I have a present for you”. But, the original nuance of the Japanese sentence is more like ‘a present exists for you’. This translation gap represents well the difference in sentence making. In the Japanese language, pronouns referring to speakers are quite often omitted. So, instead of these pronouns, inanimate things like “purezento” tend to become the subject word in a sentence.

“Purezento ga ari masu” used in this example is a very common expression for ‘I have a present for you’. So, it’s worth knowing.

Then, let me explain how “purezento” is different from the two similar words: “okurimono” and “omiyage”.

Definition and meaning of “okurimono”

Below are the definition and meaning of “okurimono”.

• okurimono – 贈り物 (おくりもの) : a noun meaning ‘present’ or ‘gift’ in Japanese.

“Okurimono” is often used to mean ‘seasonal gift’ or some such in Japanese. It sounds much more formal, so would be better for formal situations. Let me paraphrase the last example with “okurimono”.

This English translation is still the same as the last one, but this Japanese sentence sounds much more formal, or perhaps a bit serious. This would be a good option in formal situations. In less formal situations, however, “purezento” is much better.

Definition and meaning of “omiyage”

Below are the definition and meaning of “omiyage”.

• omiyage – お土産 (おみやげ) : a noun meaning ‘souvenir’ or perhaps ‘present’ in Japanese.

“Omiyage” is mainly used to mean ‘souvenir’ in Japanese. When we buy something while traveling, we can call it “omiyage”. It is not a general word for “present”. Let me paraphrase the last example with “omiyage” as follows.

Here, “omiyage” is used to mean ‘souvenir’ in Japanese. This English translation reflects the change in meaning. When we want to mean ‘souvenir’ specifically in Japanese, we should use “omiyage” instead of “purezento”.

Summary

In this blog post, I’ve explained “purezento” in detail through the example sentence. And also, I’ve explained how it is different from the two similar words: “okurimono” and “omiyage”. Let me summarize them as follows.

• purezento – プレゼント (ぷれぜんと) : a noun meaning ‘present’ in Japanese. Depending on the situation, it can also be used as a plural noun meaning ‘presents’.
• okurimono – 贈り物 (おくりもの) : a noun meaning ‘present’ or ‘gift’ in Japanese. It sounds much more formal than “purezento”, so would be better for more formal situations.
• omiyage – お土産 (おみやげ) : a noun meaning ‘souvenir’ or perhaps ‘present’ in Japanese. It is mainly used to mean ‘souvenir’. When we want to mean ‘souvenir’ specifically in Japanese, it would be a good option.

Hope my explanations are understandable and helpful for Japanese learners.