6 Ways to Say “White” in Japanese (Kanji & Hiragana)


6 Ways to Say White and "Color White" in Japanese - Translations & Kanji Shiro 白 Shiroi 白い Hakushoku 白色

The next Japanese color word on our list is “white“. I will show you 6 different ways to saywhite” and the “color white” in Japanese. As usual, you will find the English translation, kanji, and hiragana for each word.

Shiro (白, しろ) is the basic Japanese word and kanji for the color white, while shiroi (白い, しろい) is a Japanese adjective that translates as “white”. As an alternative, the word hakushoku (白色, はくしょく) and the English loanword howaito (ホワイト) can be used to say “white” in Japanese.

For more information about each of the Japanese words shiro (白), shiroi (白い), hakushoku (白色), and howaito (ホワイト) check out the following section. I also cover how to say “pure white” and “snow whitein Japanese including the name of the famous Disney princess. Last but not least, you will find a list of words and translations that are often requested such as “white tiger“, “white dragon“, “white fox“, “white cat“, and “white day“.

How to Say “White” in Japanese

  • shiro – 白
  • shiroi – 白い
  • hakushoku – 白色
  • howaito – ホワイト
  • masshiro – 真っ白
  • seppaku – 雪白
  • junpaku – 純白

1. Shiro – Basic Japanese Word & Kanji For The Color “White”

Shiro (白, しろ) is the basic Japanese noun and kanji for “white” and is best translated as the “color white“. The word is used when talking about colors in general and refers to the color white aka the color of fresh snow or milk.

It is also often used in names for animals or things that are normally white. Here are a couple of examples:

  • white wine is shiro wine (白ワイン)
  • white rabbit is shiro usagi (白うさぎ)
  • white rose is shiro bara (白バラ)
  • white cat is shiro neko (白猫)

Just like in English, the Japanese word for “white”, shiro (白) is also associated with a couple of other meanings such as “innocent“, “innocent person“, and “blank (white) space“.

shiro

white
white color
the color white

2. Shiroi – Japanese Adjective Which Translates as “White”

Shiroi (白い, しろい) is an i-adjective and the most commonly used word forwhite” or to describe that something “is white” in Japanese. The adjective can be used to form sentences such as “… is white” which is 〇〇は白いです (〇〇 は しろい です) and “white …” which is 白い〇〇 (しろい 〇〇).

shiroi
白い
white

3. Hakushoku – Alternative Way to Say “White” in Japanese

Hakushoku (白色, はくしょく) is an alternative way to say “white” in Japanese. It is a noun that can be translated as “white color” or the “color white“. However, it can also be used as an adjective by adding the particle no (の) and saying hakushoku no (白色の〇〇) which translates as “white …“.

hakushoku
白色
white
white color

An alternative and less commonly used way to read the kanji 白色 (hakushoku) is “shiroiro“.

shiroiro
白色
white
white color

4. Howaito – English Loanword Meaning “White”

Howaito (ホワイト) is an English loanword for “white” or the “color white“. While it could be used to talk about colors with your Japanese friends and colleagues, it is more commonly found in anime, manga, and video games in order to have a cool-sounding name for places, monsters, spells, and/or heroes.

It is also sometimes used for animals. “White tigers” are often called howaito taigaa (ホワイトタイガー) and “white wolves” are also sometimes referred to as howaito urufu (ホワイトウルフ) instead of shiro ookami (白狼) or shiroi ookami (白い狼).

howaito
ホワイト
white

5. Masshiro – Japanese Word For “Pure White”

The Japanese word for “pure white” is masshiro (真っ白, まっしろ). You should use the word when you want to say that something is or looks “pure white” or when you want to describe that something is “completely white“. Masshiro (真っ白) is a na-adjective that can also be used with the particle no (の).

masshiro
真っ白
pure white
completely white
extremely white

You might remember the first kanji from makkuro (真っ黒), the Japanese word for “pitch black”.

6. Seppaku – Japanese Word for “Snow White”

Seppaku (雪白, せっぱく) and junpaku (純白, じゅんぱく) are two Japanese words with the same meaning and can be translated as “snow white” and “pure white“. The first kanji of the word seppaku (雪白) literally means “snow” while the first kanji of junpaku (純白) translates as “pure” or “innocent“.

junpaku
純白
pure white
snow white

The word seppaku (雪白) can also be translated as “pure” or “immaculate” and it has an alternative reading which is “yukijiro“.

seppaku
雪白
snow white
pure
immaculate

The famous Disney princess “Snow White“, on the other hand, is called shirayukihime (白雪姫, しらゆきひめ) or sometimes sunoo howaito (スノーホワイト) in Japanese. The original Japanese name shirayukihime (白雪姫) literally translates as “white snow princess”.

shirayukihime
白雪姫
Snow White

sunoo howaito
スノーホワイト
Snow White

Popular Japanese Words Containing the Word “White”

white tigerbyakko
howaito taigaa
白虎
ホワイトタイガー
white wolfshiro ookami
shiroi ookami
howaito urufu
白狼
白い狼
ホワイトウルフ
white catshiroi neko
shiro neko
白い猫
白猫
white dragonhakuryuu白龍
white foxshirogitsune白狐
white flowershiroi hana白い花
white roseshiro bara
shiroi bara
白バラ
白いバラ
white dogshiroi inu白い犬
white ricehakumai白米
white dayhowaito deeホワイトでー
white rabbitshiro usagi白うさぎ
Popular Japanese Words Containing the Word “White”

Alex

おはよう. I'm Alex. I have started studying Japanese when I was still a high school student and I have been living and working in Japan since 2015. I'm still learning new Japanese phrases and words every day and I thought that publishing them online will be useful for you, too. Hopefully, my study notes and free Japanese lessons will help you to reach the Japanese level you want to have! If you want to practice your Japanese for free follow me on Twitter and/or Instagram.

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