Translation guide
In Japanese, expressing 'a moment's leisure' or 'free time' often involves nouns like 暇 (ひま) or 余暇 (よか), but the most natural phrasing depends on whether you're talking about having free time, being free, or spending leisure time. Common patterns include 暇がある, 暇な時, or 時間がある.
Expressing that one has free time or a moment to spare
The most common word for 'free time' or 'leisure'. Can also mean 'being free' or 'having nothing to do'. Used in casual and formal contexts.
暇な時に電話してください。
Please call me when you have a moment's leisure.
今日は暇ですか？
Are you free today?
Literally 'to have time'. A very natural way to say you have free time, without the nuance of boredom that 暇 can sometimes carry.
ちょっと時間がありますか？
Do you have a moment's leisure?
時間があるときに遊びに来てください。
Please come visit when you have some free time.
A more formal term for 'leisure time', often used in written contexts or discussions about work-life balance.
Literally 'one's hands become empty', meaning to become free or have a moment to spare from a task.
手が空いたら手伝ってください。
Please help me when you have a moment's leisure.
Emphasizing a short, fleeting moment of leisure
Means 'a little bit of free time' or 'a brief moment of leisure'. ちょっとした adds the nuance of 'slight' or 'trifling'.
ちょっとした暇に本を読む。
I read a book in my moment's leisure.
わずかな means 'a little' or 'few', emphasizing the scarcity of free time.
わずかな暇も無駄にしない。
I don't waste even a moment's leisure.
A literary or formal term meaning 'a moment's leisure' or 'a little free time'. Often used in set phrases like 寸暇を惜しむ (to begrudge every moment of free time).
寸暇を惜しんで勉強する。
Study without wasting a moment's leisure.
Discussing leisure in an abstract or lifestyle sense
The English phrase 'moment's leisure' is often translated literally as 瞬間の余暇, but this sounds unnatural in Japanese. Use 暇 or 時間がある instead.
瞬間の余暇
moment's leisure (literal, unnatural)
暇 can imply boredom or having nothing to do, while 時間がある simply means having time available. In polite or business contexts, 時間がある is safer.
暇が全然ない。
I don't have a moment's leisure.
彼女は暇な時に絵を描くのを楽しんでいる。
She enjoys painting in her moments of leisure.
ちょっと話す時間ありますか？
Do you have a moment's leisure to talk?