How do you say "ball" in Japanese?

In Japanese, "ball" is ボール (bōru). It is a noun pronounced "boh-roo".

Listen to the pronunciation:

Illustration of ball from Noun Town

Pronunciation

ボール is written in katakana. Romanised as bōru, it sounds roughly like "boh-roo" to an English ear.

Example sentence

新しいボールを買いました。

Atarashii Bōru wo kaimashita.

I bought a new ball.

Usage notes

Bōru (ボール) is the Japanese word for ball. This noun appears in everyday contexts across homes, offices, schools, and public spaces.

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Questions about ボール

How do you pronounce ボール?

ボール is romanised as bōru. Say it roughly like "boh-roo" in English. Each Japanese syllable has even weight, so keep the rhythm steady.

Is ボール formal or casual?

ボール 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 ボール written in Japanese?

ボール is written using katakana. Katakana is typically used for words of foreign origin or to give emphasis.

This word is part of the vocabulary taught in the Japanese language learning game Noun Town, where words are introduced through play rather than memorisation.