How do you say "full" in Japanese?

いっぱい

ippai

Adjective Hiragana

In Japanese, "full" is いっぱい (ippai).

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Pronunciation

いっぱい is written using hiragana. Romanised as ippai, it sounds roughly like "eep-pah-ee" to an English ear.

Writing and usage

Ippai (いっぱい) is written in hiragana. It appears in the common phrase onaka ga ippai (belly is full), which is how Japanese speakers say they are satisfied after eating.

Example sentence

このカバンはいっぱいです。

Kono kaban wa ippai desu.

This bag is full.

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How to remember いっぱい

Ippai literally means 'one cup full.' Think of a cup overflowing to the brim, which is exactly how your stomach feels when you say this word.

Related words

Browse all Japanese words in the glossary.

See more Japanese adjectives.

Questions about いっぱい

How do you pronounce いっぱい?

いっぱい is romanised as ippai. Say it roughly like "eep-pah-ee" in English. Each Japanese syllable has even weight, so keep the rhythm steady.

Is いっぱい formal or casual?

いっぱい 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 いっぱい written in Japanese?

いっぱい is written using hiragana. Ippai (いっぱい) is written in hiragana.

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.

"Full" 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.

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