What does “tenki” mean in Japanese?
Native speakers say “tenki” to mean ‘weather’ in Japanese. Probably, many Japanese learners know this word as it is often used in Japanese conversations. In this blog post, however, I will explain this word in detail based on its kanji expression. And also, I will explain how to use it through example sentences. My explanations would help Japanese learners to understand “tenki” more clearly. Then, let’s get started!
Contents
Definition and meaning of “tenki”
Let me start with the definition and meaning of “tenki”.
- tenki – 天気 (てんき) : a noun meaning ‘weather’ in Japanese.
Native speakers use this noun to mean ‘weather’ in Japanese. It is also worth mentioning here that they use this noun to mean ‘good weather’ especially in speaking.
The definition and meaning are simple and clear, I think. To understand this noun more clearly, however, let me explain its kanji characters in detail, one by one.
Tenki in kanji
The kanji expression of “tenki” consists of the following two characters:
- 天 : a kanji character used to mean ‘the sky’ or ‘the heaven’ in Japanese. This kanji can also be found in other words like “tengoku“, “tensai“, and “tenshi“.
- 気 : a kanji character used to mean ‘mood’, ‘feeling’, or such in Japanese.
These two kanji characters tell us that “tenki” literally means ‘the sky mood’ in Japanese. This literal interpretation is not completely in line with the meaning, but still a good metaphor for weather, I think. The Japanese language considers weather conditions as moods of the sky.
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 the meanings of the expressions they form. Actually, here, we could get the better understanding of “tenki” through the detailed kanji check above.
Then, let me explain how to use “tenki” through the example sentences below.
Example #1: how to say “weather” in Japanese
kyou no tenki wa totemo ii – 今日の天気はとても良い (きょうのてんきはとてもいい)
Today’s weather is very good.
Below are the new words used in the example sentence.
- kyou – 今日 (きょう) : a noun meaning ‘today’ 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 “kyou” and “tenki”. The formed phrase literally means ‘today’s weather’ in Japanese.
- wa – は : a binding particle working as a case marker or topic marker. In the example, this works after the noun phrase, “kyou no tenki”, to make the subject in the sentence.
- totemo – とても : an adverb of degree meaning ‘so’, ‘very’, ‘much’, or such in Japanese. In the example, this works before “ii” to emphasize its meaning.
- ii – 良い (いい) : an i-adjective meaning ‘good’, ‘nice’, or such in Japanese.
This is a typical usage of “tenki”. In this example, it works as a part of the noun phrase which means ‘today’s weather’ in Japanese. When we want to say “weather” in Japanese, anyway, this noun is a very good option.
Example #2: another usage of “tenki”
boku wa kinou tenki yohou wo mi ta – 僕は昨日天気予報を見た (ぼくはきのうてんきよほうをみた)
I checked the weather forecast yesterday.
Below are the new words used in the example sentence.
- boku – 僕 (ぼく) : a pronoun meaning ‘I’ in Japanese. This is used mainly by boys and young males.
- kinou – 昨日 (きのう) : a noun meaning ‘yesterday’ in Japanese. This can also work as an adverb almost anywhere in a sentence. In the example, this works as an adverb to say “yesterday” in Japanese.
- yohou – 予報 (よほう) : a noun meaning ‘forecast’ in Japanese.
- wo – を : a case particle used to make the object word in a sentence. In the example, this is used after the noun, “tenki yohou”, to make the object in the sentence.
- mi – 見 (み) : one conjugation of the verb, “miru“, which means ‘to see’, ‘to watch’, ‘to look’, 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 “mi” to make its past tense form, “mi ta”.
This is another typical usage of “tenki”. In this example, it works together with “yohou” to make the longer noun, “tenki yohou”, which means ‘weather forecast’ in Japanese. Native speakers often use this noun together with the verb, “miru”, to mean ‘to check the weather forecast’ in Japanese. This is a kind of idiomatic expression.
Summary
In this blog post, I’ve explained the definition and meaning of “tenki” in detail based on its kanji expression. And also, I’ve explained how to use it through the example sentences. Let me summarize them as follows.
- tenki – 天気 (てんき) : a noun meaning ‘weather’ in Japanese. These two kanji characters literally mean ‘the sky mood’. This literal interpretation is not completely in line with the meaning, but still a good metaphor for weather, I think. The Japanese language considers weather conditions as moods of the sky. It is also worth mentioning here that native speakers use this noun to mean ‘good weather’ especially in speaking.
Hope my explanations are understandable and helpful for Japanese learners.
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