How do you say "aquarium" in Japanese?

水族館

suizokukan

Noun Kanji

In Japanese, "aquarium" is 水族館 (suizokukan).

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Pronunciation

水族館 is written using kanji. Romanised as suizokukan, it sounds roughly like "soo-ee-zoh-koo-kah-n" to an English ear.

Writing and usage

Suizokukan is three kanji: water, tribe/clan, and hall. The construction is logical: hall for a water-dwelling community. It's a structured, descriptive compound.

Example sentence

部屋に水族館があります。

Heya ni Suizokukan ga arimasu.

There is a aquarium in the room.

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How to remember 水族館

Sui (水) is water. Zoku (族) looks like people gathered, but here means a group or community. Kan (館) is a building.

Related words

Browse all Japanese words in the glossary.

See more Japanese nouns.

Questions about 水族館

How do you pronounce 水族館?

水族館 is romanised as suizokukan. Say it roughly like "soo-ee-zoh-koo-kah-n" in English. Each Japanese syllable has even weight, so keep the rhythm steady.

Is 水族館 formal or casual?

水族館 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 水族館 written in Japanese?

水族館 is written using kanji. Suizokukan is three kanji: water, tribe/clan, and hall.

Where can I practice Japanese words for free?

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"Aquarium" in other languages

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