How do you say "wave" in Japanese?

波

nami

Noun Kanji

In Japanese, "wave" is 波 (nami).

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Pronunciation

NAH-mee, two light syllables, the 'mi' trailing off softly like water receding.

Writing and usage

波 is written using kanji. 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

巨大な波が岸に打ち寄せた。

kyodai na nami ga kishi ni uchi yose ta.

A huge wave crashed onto the shore.

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How to remember 波

Nami curls off the tongue and trails away, much like a wave curling and receding on the shore.

Related words

Browse all Japanese words in the glossary.

Questions about 波

How do you pronounce 波?

NAH-mee, two light syllables, the 'mi' trailing off softly like water receding.

Is 波 formal or casual?

波 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 波 written in Japanese?

波 is written using kanji. Romanised, it reads as nami.

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.

"Wave" 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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