Storm in Japanese: arashi, explained based on its kanji character

How to say “storm” in Japanese

Japanese people would say “arashi”. It is the Japanese word for ‘storm’. This word would be famous as the name of the popular Japanese music group, I guess. In this blog post, however, I will focus on this word as a word. I will explain it in detail based on its kanji character. And also, I will explain how to use it through example sentences. Let’s get started!

Contents

• Definition and meaning of “arashi”
• “Arashi” in kanji
• Example #1: how to say “storm” in Japanese
• Example #2: another usage of “arashi”
• Summary

Definition and meaning of “arashi”

Below are the definition and meaning of “arashi”.

• arashi – 嵐 (あらし) : a noun meaning ‘storm’ in Japanese. This word can also work as a plural noun. Learn more about Japanese plural.

Its definition and meaning are very simple and clear, I think. To understand this word more clearly, however, let me explain its kanji character in detail.

“Arashi” in kanji

Below is the kanji character used for “arashi”.

• 嵐 : a kanji character widely used to mean ‘storm’ in Japanese.

This kanji character consists of the following two parts:

• 山 : a kanji character used to mean ‘mountain’ in Japanese.
• 風 : a kanji character used to mean ‘wind’ in Japanese.

From these two components, we can understand that “arashi” literally means ‘mountain and wind’. So, in the Japanese language, a storm seems to be considered as winds blowing down from a mountain. I don’t think that this kanji concept is in line with actual meteorological phenomena. Still, it was a very good idea in the past. People didn’t know the details of meteorological phenomena: what made a storm a storm.

When we meet new kanji expressions, we should check their kanji characters in detail to understand their meanings clearly and deeply. In many cases, kanji characters tell us a lot about meanings of words they form. Actually, here, we could get the better understanding of “arashi” through the detailed kanji check above.

Then, let me explain how to use “arashi” through the example sentences below.

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

Below are the new words used in the example sentence.

• ga – が : a case particle used to make the subject word or the object word in a sentence. In the example, it is used after “arashi” to make the subject word in the sentence.
• chikazui – 近づい (ちかづい) : one conjugation of the verb, “chikazuku”, which means ‘to approach’, ‘to get close’, or such. In the example, it has been conjugated for the better connection with its following word.
• te – て : a conjunctive particle used after a verb or adjective to make its te form. In the example, it is used after “chikazui” to make its te form, “chikazui te”. Verbs need to be changed to their te forms to be connected with “iru”.
• iru – いる : an auxiliary verb used to express the continuity of the action described by the preceding verb. In the example, this is used after the te-formed verb, “chikazui te”, to express the continuity of its action, ‘to approach’.

This is a typical usage of “arashi”. In the example, it works as a singular noun and a part of the commonly-used expression which means ‘a storm is approaching’. When we want to say “storm” in Japanese, this word is the best choice.

Example #2: another usage of “arashi”

Below are the new words used in the example sentence.

• kotoshi – 今年 (ことし) : a noun meaning ‘this year’ in Japanese. This can also work as an adverb and be inserted almost anywhere in a sentence to say “this year”. In the example, it works as an adverb at the beginning of the sentence.
• wa – は : a binding particle working as a case marker or topic marker. In the example, it works as a topic marker after “kotoshi” to put a focus on ‘this year’.
• ōkat – 多かっ (おおかっ) : one conjugation of the i-adjective, “ōi”, which means ‘large in number’ in Japanese. In the example, it has been conjugated for the better connection with its following word.
• ta – た : an auxiliary verb used after a verb or adjective to make its past tense form. In the example, this is used after “ōkat” to make its past tense form, “ōkat ta”.
• ne – ね : a sentence-ending particle used to make listener’s agreement in a soft way. As its definition suggests, this is used at the end of the example sentence to make listener’s agreement. It has been translated as “didn’t we?”

This is another typical usage of “arashi”. In this example, it works as a plural noun. When we want to say “storms” in Japanese, this word is again the best choice.

Summary

In this blog post, I’ve explained the word, “arashi”, in detail based on its kanji character. And also, I’ve explained how to use it through the example sentences. Let me summarize them as follows.

• arashi – 嵐 (あらし) : a noun meaning ‘storm’ in Japanese. This word can also work as a plural noun. The kanji character consists of the two parts: “山” and “風”. The first one means ‘mountain’; the second means ‘wind’. In the Japanese language, therefore, a storm seems to be considered as winds blowing down from a mountain. This kanji concept is not in line with actual meteorological phenomena. Still, it was a very good idea in the past. People didn’t know the details of meteorological phenomena: what made a storm a storm.

Hope my explanations are understandable and helpful for Japanese learners.