In this blog post, I am going to answer the question of how to say “moon” in Japanese. In comparison to my other vocabulary lessons, I have a pretty simple and straightforward answer for you this time, since generally speaking, there are only two words for “moon” in Japanese. So let’s take a look at them.
“Tsuki” is the word used to say “moon” in Japanese and 月 is the kanji that is commonly used to write the word in Japanese. There is also an English loanword written in katakana which is “muun” (ムーン). Although it is rarely used to refer to the moon, it can be found in names for places, games, etc.
Below I will explain the two words you can use to say moon in Japanese in more detail. You will also find out why 月, the kanji for moon, is sometimes read as “gatsu” or “getsu” instead of “tsuki“. After that, you will find related words such as how to say “full moon“, “new moon“, “blood moon“, and “sailor moon” in Japanese.
How to Say “Moon” in Japanese
- tsuki – 月
- muun – ムーン
1. Tsuki – Most Common Word for “Moon” in Japanese
Tsuki (月) means “moon” and is the most commonly used word to refer to the moon, the natural satellite of the Earth, in Japanese. Even its kanji 月 depicts a crescent moon that is hidden behind clouds. The rectangular outline symbolizes the moon, while the two horizontal lines stand for the clouds.
tsuki
月
moon
Besides “(the) moon” the Japanese word tsuki (月) can also be translated as “month“, “moonlight“, and “(a) moon” or “natural satellite (of a planet)” (source). However, most of the time, it is used to refer to the Earth’s moon.
other meanings:
month
moonlight
(a) moon, natural satellite
The kanji 月 can also be read as getsu (げつ) or gatsu (がつ), especially in compound words and phrases related to “month” or “monthly“. Here are a few examples: ichigatsu (一月) means “January“, nigatsu (二月) means “February“, kongetsu (今月) means “this month“, and getsuyoubi (月曜日) means “Monday“.
ichigatsu
一月
Januarynigatsu
二月
Februarykongetsu
今月
this monthgetsuyoubi
月曜日
Monday
Check out this video if you want to know how to write moon (月) in Japanese:
2. Muun – English Loanword Meaning “Moon”
Just like other English loanwords such as “sukai” meaning “sky” and “san” meaning “sun”, the word muun (ムーン) can be used to say “moon” in Japanese. The pronunciation is exactly the same as its English counterpart, however, the loanword is usually only found in names and is not used to refer to the Earth’s moon.
muun
ムーン
moon
The video game “Pokémon Moon“, for example, is called Pokemonsutaa Muun (ポケットモンスター ムーン) in Japanese. A supermoon is also referred to as “suupaa muun” (スーパームーン). You will find a few more examples such as “blood moon“, “sailor moon“, and “dark moon” down below.
Advanced Words That Mean “Moon” in Japanese
- mangetsu – 満月
- shingetsu – 新月
- mikazuki – 三日月
- buraddo muun -ブラッドムーン
- buruu muun – ブルームーン
- akai tsuki – 赤い月
- kirei na tsuki – 綺麗な月
- seeraa muun – セーラームーン
3. Mangetsu – “Full Moon”
Mangetsu (満月) is the most commonly used Japanese word for “full moon“. The first kanji 満 means “full” or “fullness” and the second kanji 月 means “moon“, but can also be translated as “month”. Mochizuki (望月), bougetsu (望月), and bou (望) are less commonly used words to say full moon in Japanese.
mangetsu
満月
full moonmochizuki
望月
full moonbougetsu
望月
full moonbou
望
full moon
Just in case you know the manga “Full Moon o sagashite” (満月をさがして), the Japanese title is read as furu muun (フルムーン) instead of “mangetsu o sagashite“. In English, the manga is titled “Full Moon“, but the Japanese title actually translates as “looking for the full moon” or “seeking for the full moon“.
4. Shingetsu – “New Moon”
Shingetsu(新月) or saku (朔) are the Japanese words you should use to say “new moon“. In daily conversations, the first word, shingetsu (新月) is commonly used. It consists of 新, the kanji for “new“, and 月, the kanji for “moon”. The word saku (朔), on the other hand, is the official astronomy term.
shingetsu
新月
new moonsaku
朔
new moon
5. Mikazuki – “Crescent Moon” or “Dark Moon”
The word “crescent moon” is mikazuki(三日月) in Japanese, but literally translates as the “moon on the third day“. Just like “shingetsu” it can also mean “new moon“. However, “mikazuki” is usually used on the third day of the lunar cycle, while “shingetsu” is used on the very first day.
mikazuki
三日月
crescent moon
6. Buraddo Muun – “Blood Moon”, “Red Moon”, or “Crimson Moon”
Buraddo muun(ブラッドムーン) is how you say “blood moon” in Japanese. The first word “buraddo” means “blood” and the second word “muun” is the English loanword for “moon“. In case of a normal total eclipse of the moon, the term kaikigesshoku (皆既月食) is used.
buraddo muun
ブラッドムーン
blood moon
red moon
crimson moon
A literal translation of “red moon” would be “akai tsuki” (赤い月). The word akai (赤い) means “red“ and the word tsuki (月) means “moon“. However, Japanese people don’t use the term “akai tsuki” to refer to a blood moon.
akai tsuki
赤い月
red moon
7. Buruu Muun – “Blue Moon”
Buruu muun(ブルームーン) and aoi tsuki (青い月) both translate as “blue moon“. When you want to talk about the “extra” full moon that can appear in a year, in other words, the 13th full moon of the year, you should use the term “buruu muun“. “Aoi tsuki” can be used as a translation of the words blue and moon.
buruu muun
ブルームーン
blue moon
(13th full moon in a year)aoi tsuki
青い月
blue moon
8. Kirei na Tsuki – “Beautiful Moon”
Kirei na tsuki(綺麗な月) and utsukushii tsuki (美しい月) both translate as “beautiful moon“. However, since the word “utsukushii” is only used when something is exceptionally beautiful, I recommend you to use the first expression “kirei na tsuki” when you want to say “beautiful moon” in Japanese.
kirei na tsuki
綺麗な月
beautiful moonutsukushii tsuki
美しい月
(exceptionally) beautiful moon
The full Japanese sentence for “The moon is beautiful” is either “Tsuki ga kirei” (月が綺麗) or “Tsuki ga utsukushii” (月が美しい). If you want to be more polite you can add the word desu (です) at the end and say “Tsuki ga kirei desu” (月が綺麗です) or “Tsuki ga utsukushii desu” (月が美しいです).
Tsuki ga kirei.
月が綺麗。
The moon is beautiful.Tsuki ga utsukushii.
月が美しい。
The moon is beautiful.
9. Seeraa Muun – “Sailor Moon”
Seeraa muun(セーラームーン) is the Japanese name for the famous manga and anime “Sailor Moon“. Since both words are foreign words, there are no kanji and it is written in katakana only. In romaji, it can also be written as Sērā Mūn.
Seeraa Muun
セーラームーン
Sailor Moon
The original Japanese title of the manga is Bishoujo Senshi Seeraa Muun (美少女戦士セーラームーン). Bishoujo (美少女) means “beautiful girl“, senshi (戦士) means “soldier” or “warrior“, seeraa (セーラー) means “sailor“, and muun (ムーン) means “moon“. It got translated as “Pretty Soldier Sailor Moon” and later as “Pretty Guardian Sailor Moon“.
Bishoujo Senshi Seeraa Muun
美少女戦士セーラームーン
Pretty Soldier Sailor Moon
Pretty Guardian Sailor Moon