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Japanese vocabulary · Beginner

How do you say "invent" in Japanese?

発明する

hatsumei suru

Verb Kanji

In Japanese, "invent" is 発明する (hatsumei suru).

Listen to the pronunciation:

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Pronunciation

Ha-tsu-mei-su-ru, five syllables, 'mei' glides like the English name 'May'.

Writing and usage

発明する is written using kanji. It's a verb, 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

新しい機械を発明したいんだ。

atarashii kikai wo hatsumei shitainda.

He wants to invent a new machine.

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How to remember 発明する

Hatsumei sounds like 'hot, sue, may' — patent it hot off the press before someone else may sue.

Related words

Browse all Japanese words in the glossary.

Questions about 発明する

How do you pronounce 発明する?

Ha-tsu-mei-su-ru, five syllables, 'mei' glides like the English name 'May'.

Is 発明する formal or casual?

発明する 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 発明する written in Japanese?

発明する is written using kanji. Romanised, it reads as hatsumei suru.

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.

"Invent" in other languages

Curated by Callan 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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