How do you say "gate" in Japanese?

門

mon

Noun Kanji

In Japanese, "gate" is 門 (mon).

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Pronunciation

門 is written using kanji. Romanised as mon, it sounds roughly like "moh-n" to an English ear.

Writing and usage

Mon (門) is a single-kanji word for gate and is very common in place names and temple or shrine names. It is one of the most straightforward architectural kanji.

Example sentence

新しい門が設置されました。

Atarashii Mon ga secchi saremashita.

A new gate has been installed.

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How to remember 門

Mon (門) looks like two vertical lines with a horizontal bar, resembling a gate frame. It appears in Asakusa's famous gate, Senso-ji's Nakamise gate.

Related words

Browse all Japanese words in the glossary.

See more Japanese nouns.

Questions about 門

How do you pronounce 門?

門 is romanised as mon. Say it roughly like "moh-n" in English. Each Japanese syllable has even weight, so keep the rhythm steady.

Is 門 formal or casual?

門 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 門 written in Japanese?

門 is written using kanji. Mon (門) is a single-kanji word for gate and is very common in place names and temple or shrine names.

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.

"Gate" in other languages

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