What does “suna” mean in Japanese?
Native speakers say “suna” to mean ‘sand’ in Japanese. Very simple. Perhaps, some Japanese learners know this word as it is sometimes used in Japanese movies, video games, manga, anime, and the like. In this blog post, however, I will explain this word in detail based on its kanji character. And also, I will explain how to use it through example sentences. My explanations would help Japanese learners to understand “suna” more clearly. Then, let’s get started!
Contents
Definition and meaning of “suna”
Let me start with the definition and meaning of “suna”.
- suna – 砂 (すな) : a noun meaning ‘sand’ in Japanese.
Native speakers use this noun to refer to small particles of rocks. So, its usage is similar to that of the English noun, “sand”, I think.
The definition and meaning are very simple and clear. To understand this noun more clearly, however, let me explain its kanji parts in detail, one by one.
Suna in kanji
The kanji character of “suna” consists of the following two parts:
- 石 : the left part. This is a kanji character widely used to mean ‘stone’ or ‘rock’ in Japanese.
- 少 : the right part. This is a kanji character widely used to mean ‘little’, ‘small’, ‘few’, or such in Japanese.
These two parts tell us that “suna” literally means ‘small rock’ in Japanese. This literal interpretation seems to be very close to the actual meaning. Normally, sand can be considered small particles or pieces of rocks. It’s also worth mentioning here that this kanji character is used in other words related to small particles like “satou“.
When we meet new kanji characters, we should check their parts in detail to understand their meanings clearly and deeply. In many cases, kanji parts tell us a lot about the meanings of the characters they form. Actually, here, we could get the better understanding of “suna” through the detailed check above. Then, let me explain how to use it through the example sentences below.
Example #1: how to say “sand” in Japanese
me ni suna ga hait ta – 目に砂が入った (めにすながはいった)
I’ve got some sand in my eyes.
Below are the new words used in the example sentence.
- me – 目 (め) : a noun meaning ‘eye’ in Japanese. This can also work as plural. Learn more about Japanese plural.
- ni – に : a case particle used to say to which object an action is directed. In the example, this is used after “me” to indicate the object to which the action described by the verb is directed.
- 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 “suna” to make the subject in the sentence.
- hait – 入っ (はいっ) : one conjugation of the verb, “hairu”, which means ‘to enter’, ‘to get into’, ‘to come into’, or such 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, adjective, or auxiliary verb to make its past tense form. Probably, this is well known as a part of Japanese ta form. In the example, this is used after “hait” to make its past tense form, “hait ta”.
This is a typical usage of “suna”. In the example, it works as a part of the commonly-used expression, “suna ga hait ta”, which means ‘to have got some sand’ in Japanese. This expression should be learnt together with its present tense form, “suna ga hairu”, which means ‘to get some sand’.
Example #2: another usage of “suna”
kanojo wa hamabe de suna no shiro wo tsukut ta – 彼女は浜辺で砂の城を作った (かのじょははまべですなのしろをつくった)
She made a sand castle on the beach.
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.
- hamabe – 浜辺 (はまべ) : a noun meaning ‘beach’ in Japanese. This can also work as plural.
- de – で : a case particle used to say where someone does something. In the example, this is used after “hamabe” to say where “kanojo” made the sand castle.
- 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 “suna” and “shiro”. The formed phrase literally means ‘sand castle’ in Japanese.
- shiro – 城 (しろ) : a noun meaning ‘castle’ in Japanese. This can also work as plural.
- wo – を : a case particle used to make the object word in a sentence. In the example, this is used after “suna no shiro” to make the object in the sentence.
- tsukut – 作っ (つくっ) : one conjugation of the verb, “tsukuru“, which means ‘to make’, ‘to create’, or such in Japanese. In the example, it has been conjugated for the better connection with its following word.
This is another typical usage of “suna”. In the example, it works as a part of the noun phrase, “suna no shiro”, which means a sand castle in Japanese. When we want to say “sand” in Japanese, anyway, this noun is a very good option.
Summary
In this blog post, I’ve explained the definition and meaning of “suna” 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.
- suna – 砂 (すな) : a noun meaning ‘sand’ in Japanese. Native speakers use this noun to refer to small particles of rocks. The left part of the kanji means ‘rock’; the right part means ‘small’. So, this kanji character literally means ‘small rock’. This literal interpretation seems to be very close to the actual meaning. Normally, sand can be considered small particles or pieces of rocks.
Hope my explanations are understandable and helpful for Japanese learners.
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