How do you say "crocodile" in Japanese?

ワニ

wani

Noun Katakana

In Japanese, "crocodile" is ワニ (wani).

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Pronunciation

Just WAH-nee, two short syllables, the 'wa' pronounced like the start of 'watt'.

Writing and usage

ワニ is written using katakana. It's a noun, and this word is also taught inside the Noun Town language learning game, where it appears in interactive lessons alongside hundreds of other everyday words.

Example sentence

ワニは川の中を静かに浮かんでいた。

wani ha kawa no naka wo shizuka ni uka ndeita.

The crocodile floated silently in the river.

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How to remember ワニ

A crocodile wants its dinner, and wani starts the same way 'wants' does.

Related words

Browse all Japanese words in the glossary.

Questions about ワニ

How do you pronounce ワニ?

Just WAH-nee, two short syllables, the 'wa' pronounced like the start of 'watt'.

Is ワニ formal or casual?

ワニ 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 ワニ written in Japanese?

ワニ is written using katakana. Romanised, it reads as wani.

Where can I practice Japanese words for free?

You can play free Japanese minigames in your browser on the Noun Town online games page, with no sign-up needed. Every word in the Japanese glossary also has native audio and an example sentence you can revisit any time.

"Crocodile" in other languages

Curated by Jack Ratcliffe

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. Want to play the full game? Get Noun Town on Steam.

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