japan
noun
any of various hard, durable, black varnishes, originally from Japan, for coating wood, metal, or other surfaces.
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japan
1 American
[juh-pan]
/ dʒəˈpæn /
noun
-
any of various hard, durable, black varnishes, originally from Japan, for coating wood, metal, or other surfaces.
-
work varnished and figured in the Japanese manner.
-
Japans, a variety of decorative motifs or patterns derived from Asian sources, used on English porcelain of the 18th and 19th centuries.
adjective
verb (used with object)
japanned,
japanning
-
to varnish with japan; lacquer.
-
to coat with any material that gives a hard, black gloss.
Japan
2
American
[juh-pan]
/ dʒəˈpæn /
noun
-
Japanese Nihon, Nippon. a constitutional monarchy on a chain of islands off the eastern coast of Asia: main islands are Hokkaido, Honshu, Kyushu, and Shikoku. 141,529 sq. mi. (366,560 sq. km). Tokyo.
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Sea of Japan, a marginal sea bounded by North Korea, the Far Eastern mainland of Russia, the Russian island Sakhalin, Japan, and South Korea: largely enclosed from the Pacific Ocean and seldom affected by tides.
Japan.
3
American
abbreviation
Japan
1
British
/ dʒəˈpæn /
noun
japan
2
British
/ dʒəˈpæn /
noun
-
a glossy durable black lacquer originally from the Orient, used on wood, metal, etc
-
work decorated and varnished in the Japanese manner
-
a liquid used as a paint drier
adjective
verb
Japan
Cultural
Discover More
Although a world leader in shipbuilding, electronics, and automobile manufacture, Japan's economy suffered a severe slump during the 1990s.
Called the “Land of the Rising Sun,” Japan is symbolized by a red sun on a white background.
Japan's ports were first opened to Western traders in the sixteenth century but were closed in the seventeenth century. Japan remained in virtual isolation until the 1850s, when an American naval officer, Matthew C. Perry, persuaded the government to reopen trade with the West.
Another symbol (see also symbol) of Japan is Fujiyama, also called Mount Fuji, a volcano whose symmetrical snow-capped peak has been the object of countless pilgrimages, poems, and paintings. It has not erupted since 1707.
Suffering from overcrowding, lack of natural resources, and the influence of powerful military factions, Japan pursued an aggressive policy of expansion in China during the 1930s, ultimately resulting in a military alliance with Germany and Italy to form the Axis powers in World War II. (See also Hiroshima (see also Hiroshima), Pearl Harbor, and Douglas MacArthur.)
Imperial Japan was organized on a feudal system (see feudalism), characterized by the samurai (the warrior class, which eventually became landed gentry) and the shogun (the hereditary administrative leader). The emperor, believed to be divine, was the ceremonial leader. Japan is a constitutional monarchy today.
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of japan1
First recorded in 1605–15; special use of Japan
Origin of Japan2
First recorded in 1570–80 as Giapan; from Malay Jăpung, Japang, from Middle Chinese; see origin at Nippon ( def. )
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
Shame on anyone who shall try to shame them for that and deny them basic rights. tpng813 Just like how japan denies its massive massacres across china.
From Time ● Aug. 13, 2013
Black japan is an excellent marking for this purpose because it dries quickly.
From Modern Machine-Shop Practice, Volumes I and II by Joshua Rose
These varnishes are also finding application in the manufacture of concrete, steel, and flat wall paints; being especially suitable for the above purposes when compounded with kauri gum japan.
From Paint Technology and Tests by Henry A. Gardner
In fact, as you can see for yourselves, the English japan looks almost like gas tar beside the American.
She said that "them she bought of tin-peddlers wuzn't worth a cent—the japan all wore off of 'em."
From Samantha at the World's Fair by Baron C. de Grimm
In 2025, Japan saw its hottest summer on record.
From Barron's ● Aug. 25, 2026
Meanwhile, automobiles built in the European Union, Japan and South Korea enjoy a U.S. tariff rate of 15%.
From MarketWatch ● Aug. 24, 2026
The 32-year-old was first-choice stand-off during their 2023 Rugby World Cup campaign, but he has been ineligible for selection while playing his club rugby in Japan since.
From BBC ● Aug. 24, 2026
To distinguish Japanese beef from Wagyu produced elsewhere, the Japan Meat Grading Association created the A5 label, which is given only to the highest-quality Japanese cuts.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 22, 2026
American officers assure Father Monaghan and others that they are more than ready to deal with Japan.
From "At Last She Stood" by Erin Entrada Kelly
“They wanted a little bit of help and we’re always there for Japan. Japan has been very good to us,” he said, “with the exception, of course, of Pearl Harbor.”
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 3, 2026
“The hype started in Japan. In Japan there are even cafés where you have contact with capybaras. And the internet helped, and the public is always curious. They want to know about the species.”
From Slate ● May 27, 2026
“This is a different place, but I tried to do what I did when I pitched in Japan. I tried to recreate the feelings I had when I pitched really well and went in relaxed.”
From Los Angeles Times ● Mar. 31, 2024
"I feel sorry for Japan. His track record speaks for itself."
From BBC ● Dec. 14, 2023
“Lord Apollo has been going through this haiku phase ever since he visited Japan. ’Tis not as bad as the time he visited Limerick.
From "The Titan's Curse" by Rick Riordan
His sponges were the ordinary reef sponges and these he would rinse in an old japanned basin, changing the water in the basin only when it became too bloody to return the sponges relatively clean.
From Time Magazine Archive
He lighted the shank of candle in the japanned candlestick and regarded the bed—as spineless as a hammock and covered with a dirty patchwork quilt, the cotton batting spilling from the edges.
From "East of Eden" by John Steinbeck
The base and pillar are in one piece, neatly japanned black.
From Microscopes and Accessory Apparatus Catalogue No. 40 by Ernst Leitz
One contained drums only; the next military toys, small swords, guns and pistols; the next would be all small carts; then came one with dolls’ furniture, most neatly made in japanned tin or iron.
From George Alfred Henty The Story of an Active Life by George Manville Fenn
The painted and japanned work has been criticized on safer grounds.
From Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 13, Slice 3 "Helmont, Jean" to "Hernosand" by Various
For some time he earned his living as a writing-master; after which he appears to have gone into the japanning trade, and in 1750 embarked some capital in a letter foundry.
From A Short History of English Printing, 1476-1898 by Alfred W. (Alfred William) Pollard
In japanning curved pieces, such as mud-guards, etc., in hanging up the work in the oven see that the liquid does not run to extremities and there form ugly blots or blotches of enamel.
From Handbook on Japanning: 2nd Edition For Ironware, Tinware, Wood, Etc. With Sections on Tinplating and Galvanizing by William N. Brown
It must be remembered that the art of japanning was looked upon at one time as an accomplishment, for about the year 1700 many gentlewomen were taught the art.
From Chats on Household Curios by Fred. W. (Frederick William) Burgess
The previous application of this undercoat was thus an advantage in the case of coarse, uneven surfaces that it formed a first and sort of obligatory initial stage in the process of japanning.
From Handbook on Japanning: 2nd Edition For Ironware, Tinware, Wood, Etc. With Sections on Tinplating and Galvanizing by William N. Brown
Varnishing is the last and the finishing process in japanning.
From Handbook on Japanning: 2nd Edition For Ironware, Tinware, Wood, Etc. With Sections on Tinplating and Galvanizing by William N. Brown
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
