How do you say "ambulance" in Japanese?

救急車

kyūkyūsha

Noun Kanji

In Japanese, "ambulance" is 救急車 (kyūkyūsha).

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Pronunciation

救急車 is written using kanji. Romanised as kyūkyūsha, it sounds roughly like "kyoo-kyoo-shah" to an English ear.

Writing and usage

Kyūkyūsha combines 救急 (kyūkyū, emergency) with 車 (sha, vehicle), the same 車 found in jidōsha (自動車, car) and jitensha (自転車, bicycle). Spotting 車 is a reliable way to guess that a word refers to a wheeled vehicle.

Example sentence

子供たちは救急車の周りで遊んでいます。

Kodomotachi wa Kyūkyūsha no mawari de asonde imasu.

The children are playing around the ambulance.

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How to remember 救急車

The doubled kyū sound is the giveaway here. Say it like two short urgent beats, kyū-kyū, mirroring the two-tone sound of an emergency siren, then finish with sha for the vehicle itself.

Related words

Browse all Japanese words in the glossary.

See more Japanese nouns.

Questions about 救急車

How do you pronounce 救急車?

救急車 is romanised as kyūkyūsha. Say it roughly like "kyoo-kyoo-shah" in English. Each Japanese syllable has even weight, so keep the rhythm steady.

Is 救急車 formal or casual?

救急車 is a neutral, everyday word that works in both casual and polite speech. The level of formality comes from the sentence structure around it, not from the word itself.

How is 救急車 written in Japanese?

救急車 is written using kanji. Kyūkyūsha combines 救急 (kyūkyū, emergency) with 車 (sha, vehicle), the same 車 found in jidōsha (自動車, car) and jitensha (自転車, bicycle).

Where can I practice Japanese words for free?

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"Ambulance" in other languages

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