Translation guide
The English word "case" has many meanings. This guide covers the most common ones for learners: a container, a situation or instance, a legal matter, a grammatical concept, and more. Each meaning is explained with natural Japanese expressions.
A box, bag, or cover for holding or protecting something.
A general loanword for a case, box, or container. Used for glasses cases, phone cases, CD cases, etc.
Please put your glasses in the case.
A box or case. More general than ケース, but can be used for larger or less specialized containers.
A container or receptacle. A general term for anything that holds things.
A particular situation or an example of something occurring.
The most common word for "case" meaning a situation or circumstance. Used in conditional phrases like "in case of..."
A matter for a court of law, or a legal action.
A legal case, incident, or affair. Used for criminal and civil cases.
A grammatical category that marks the function of a noun or pronoun.
The linguistic term for grammatical case. Used in grammar explanations.
An instance of a disease or a person receiving medical treatment.
A medical case or clinical case. Used by doctors and in medical contexts.
A crime or mystery to be solved.
Same as legal case, but also used for criminal investigations.
場合 is the most natural and common way to say "in case of" or "in the case that." ケース is a loanword and sounds more technical or business-like. Use 場合 for everyday speech.
In case of fire, please escape.
What's in this box?
小物を入れる入れ物が欲しい。
I want a case for small items.
In case of emergency, press this button.
In case it rains, the game will be canceled.
Also used for "case" as an instance or example, especially in business or technical contexts.
In this case, we use a different method.
A case study or example, often used in academic or professional settings.
Analyze successful cases.
The case is in court.
A lawsuit or litigation. More formal and specifically legal.
He filed a case against the company.
A trial or court case. Refers to the judicial process.
The case has been dragging on.
日本語には格助詞があります。
Japanese has case particles.
This case is rare.
A patient. When "case" refers to a person under medical care.
The case recovered.
The detective solved the case.
A matter or case under consideration, often used in police or business contexts.
Unsolved cases are piling up.
このケースでは例外です。
In this case, it's an exception.
While ケース is versatile, it cannot replace 場合 in many natural expressions. For example, "just in case" is 念のため, not ケースのために.