Japanese

American  

[jap-uh-neez, -nees] / ˌdʒæp əˈniz, -ˈnis /

adjective

1. of, relating to, or characteristic of Japan, its people, or their language.

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noun

• Japanese
  plural

1. Often Offensive. a native or inhabitant of Japan or a person of Japanese descent.

2. the language of Japan. Japn., Japn

Japanese British  

/ ˌdʒæpəˈniːz /

adjective

1. of, relating to, or characteristic of Japan, its people, or their language

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noun

1. a native or inhabitant of Japan or a descendant of one

2. the official language of Japan: the native language of approximately 100 million people: considered by some scholars to be part of the Altaic family of languages

Sensitive Note

In the past, the word Japanese has been used as a noun to describe a person or people (the store owner is a Japanese ). This usage is dated and often considered offensive today.

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• anti-Japanese
  adjective
• non-Japanese
  adjective
• pro-Japanese
  adjective
• pseudo-Japanese
  adjective
• quasi-Japanese
  adjective

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• Japanese
  plural

Etymology

Origin of Japanese

First recorded in 1580–90; Japan + -ese

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

Japanese

Japanese Cardinal Tarcisio Isao Kikuchi, who also saw the pope Monday, told the Repubblica daily Leo was "very relaxed, as he always is, and jokey, as usual".

From Barron's ● Oct. 13, 2026

Japanese stocks were also sharply lower, with the Nikkei 225 losing nearly three percent as chipmaker Kioxia tumbled more than 12 percent, while Tokyo Electron and Advantest were off more than six percent.

From Barron's ● Oct. 13, 2026

“The edge is the Japanese heritage. Consumers like going to arcades,” he said.

From MarketWatch ● Oct. 12, 2026

The Japanese owner of Uniqlo and other clothing brands said Thursday that net profit rose 25% to 542.52 billion yen, equivalent to $3.43 billion, for the 12 months ended August.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 8, 2026

As the Japanese tightened their grip on the Philippines, President Franklin D. Roosevelt ordered General MacArthur to leave the Philippines and relocate to Australia so General MacArthur could regroup, strategize, and return, ready to fight.

From "At Last She Stood" by Erin Entrada Kelly