Translation guide
The death penalty is a legal punishment where a person is executed for a crime. In Japanese, the most common term is 死刑 (shikei). This guide covers how to talk about the death penalty, including related verbs, legal terms, and common expressions.
Referring to the death penalty as a punishment or sentence
The standard term for 'death penalty' or 'capital punishment'. Used in legal contexts and everyday conversation.
日本では死刑制度があります。
Japan has the death penalty system.
彼は死刑を宣告された。
He was sentenced to death.
Literally 'extreme punishment', a more formal or literary term for the death penalty. Often used in news or serious discussions.
極刑が執行された。
The death penalty was carried out.
Describing the act of giving a death sentence
The most common way to say 'to sentence someone to death'. 宣告 (senkoku) means 'sentencing' or 'pronouncement'.
裁判官は被告人に死刑を宣告した。
The judge sentenced the defendant to death.
Literally 'to hand down a death sentence'. Used in legal contexts.
最高裁は死刑判決を下した。
The Supreme Court handed down a death sentence.
Describing the act of execution
The standard phrase for 'to carry out the death penalty'. 執行 (shikkō) means 'execution' or 'carrying out'.
死刑囚の死刑が執行された。
The death row inmate was executed.
A more general term for 'to execute', not limited to legal death penalty. Can sound more brutal or historical.
反逆者は処刑された。
The rebels were executed.
Referring to a person sentenced to death or the place they are held
A prisoner who has been sentenced to death; a death row inmate.
死刑囚は独房に入れられている。
The death row inmate is kept in solitary confinement.
A prisoner whose death sentence has been finalized (after appeals). Used in legal contexts.
死刑確定囚の数は増えている。
The number of death row inmates with finalized sentences is increasing.
Discussing the movement to end capital punishment
The term for 'abolition of the death penalty'. Often used in debates and activism.
死刑廃止を求める声が高まっている。
Calls for the abolition of the death penalty are growing.
Referring to specific ways the death penalty is carried out
Execution by hanging. This is the method used in Japan.
日本では絞首刑が行われている。
Hanging is used as the method of execution in Japan.
Electric chair, used in some U.S. states. Not used in Japan, but may appear in news or fiction.
死罪 (shizai) is an older term for a capital crime or death sentence, often used historically. In modern Japanese, 死刑 (shikei) is the standard word for the death penalty.
死刑 is often combined with other kanji to form related terms: 死刑制度 (shikei seido, death penalty system), 死刑判決 (shikei hanketsu, death sentence verdict), 死刑執行 (shikei shikkō, execution).
アメリカの一部の州では電気椅子が使われる。
The electric chair is used in some U.S. states.