Translation guide
Ways to express passing or wasting time until something else happens, from casual to formal.
Spending time in a relaxed or unproductive way while waiting for something.
The most common and natural way to say 'kill time'. Literally 'crush time'. Used in casual conversation.
Spending time in a lazy or unproductive manner, not necessarily waiting for something.
To spend time lazily, doing nothing in particular. Implies a lack of purpose or energy.
Specifically filling time before a scheduled event or appointment.
The literal translation '時間を殺す' (じかんをころす) is not used in Japanese and sounds unnatural. Use 時間をつぶす instead.
I killed time at a café until the train came.
I read a book to kill time.
Similar to 時間をつぶす, but emphasizes having free time or being bored. '暇' means 'free time' or 'boredom'.
I played games to kill time.
Same as 時間をつぶす but using the kanji 潰す. Slightly more formal or written style.
Please tell me how to kill time while waiting.
I like killing time at home on my days off.
Literally 'spend time wastefully'. Stronger nuance of regret or criticism about wasted time.
I ended up killing time looking at my phone.
How do you kill time at the hospital?
Literally 'fill time'. Used when you have a gap in your schedule and need something to do.
I had 30 minutes until the meeting, so I took a walk to kill time.