How do you say "wash" in Japanese?

In Japanese, "wash" is 洗う (arau). It is a verb pronounced "ah-rah-oo".

Listen to the pronunciation:

Pronunciation

洗う is written in kanji and hiragana. Romanised as arau, it sounds roughly like "ah-rah-oo" to an English ear.

Example sentence

私は洗うことが好きです。

Watashi wa arau koto ga suki desu.

I enjoy washing.

Usage notes

洗う means to wash in Japanese. This is an everyday verb that learners encounter early. Mastering its masu form (洗います) and te-form opens up many sentence patterns.

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Questions about 洗う

How do you pronounce 洗う?

洗う is romanised as arau. Say it roughly like "ah-rah-oo" in English. Each Japanese syllable has even weight, so keep the rhythm steady.

Is 洗う formal or casual?

洗う is the plain (dictionary) form, used in casual speech and in dictionaries. For polite situations, verbs take a different ending, typically -masu. In Noun Town the game always shows the dictionary form.

How is 洗う written in Japanese?

洗う is written using kanji and hiragana. Kanji characters carry the core meaning; any hiragana or katakana that follow show grammatical endings.

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.