Translation guide
The English verb "pick" has several core meanings: to choose or select, to pluck or harvest, to remove or take off, and to pick up or lift. This guide organizes Japanese expressions by these practical meanings, from most common to more niche uses.
To decide on one or more items from a group; to make a choice.
Pick a card. · I picked the red one. · She was picked for the team.
The most general and common verb for 'choose' or 'select'. Works for objects, people, options, etc.
好きなカードを選んでください。
Please pick a card you like.
彼は赤い方を選んだ。
He picked the red one.
Formal term for selecting someone for a position or role, like being picked for a team or committee.
彼女は代表に選出された。
She was picked as the representative.
To carefully pick out the best from many; 'hand-pick' or 'select with care'.
彼は最高の選手を選り抜いた。
He picked out the best players.
To remove something from where it grows or is attached, like fruit, flowers, or feathers.
pick apples · pick flowers · pick a guitar string
Used for picking small things with fingers, especially flowers, tea leaves, or herbs. Also for pinching.
庭で花を摘んだ。
I picked flowers in the garden.
茶葉を摘む季節です。
It's the season for picking tea leaves.
Specifically for picking fruit or vegetables by twisting or pulling off from a plant.
りんごをもいだ。
I picked an apple.
For playing a stringed instrument by plucking (e.g., guitar, harp). Not 'pick' in the harvesting sense.
ギターの弦を指で弾く。
Pick the guitar strings with your fingers.
To take something away from a surface or from where it is attached, often with fingers.
pick a scab · pick fluff off your sweater · pick your nose
General verb for 'take' or 'remove'. Can be used for picking off lint, stickers, etc.
セーターから糸くずを取った。
I picked a piece of fluff off my sweater.
To pick at or dig into something with a finger or tool, often with a negative nuance (picking a scab, picking your nose).
To pick up or pinch something small with fingertips, like removing a hair or a crumb.
To lift something from a surface or the ground; to collect someone or something.
pick up the phone · pick up a coin · pick up the kids from school
To pick up something from the ground or a surface, often something dropped or found.
彼はコインを拾った。
He picked up a coin.
Can mean 'pick up' in the sense of answering a phone or taking an object from a surface.
電話を取ってください。
Please pick up the phone.
To go to pick up a person (from a station, school, etc.).
子供を学校に迎えに行く。
I'll pick up the kids from school.
To repeatedly criticize, tease, or treat someone unfairly.
Stop picking on your little brother. · He always gets picked on at school.
General verb for bullying or teasing; can be used for 'picking on' someone.
彼は弟をいつもいじめている。
He's always picking on his little brother.
To tease or make fun of someone playfully or maliciously.
To intentionally start a fight or argument.
He's always trying to pick a fight. · Don't pick a fight with him.
Literally 'to sell a fight'; idiomatic for 'pick a fight'.
彼はよくけんかを売ってくる。
He often tries to pick a fight.
To open a lock without a key, using tools.
He picked the lock and got in. · Can you pick this lock?
To force a lock open; 'pick' in the sense of breaking in.
泥棒は鍵をこじ開けて入った。
The burglar picked the lock and entered.
Loanword from English 'picking', used specifically for lock-picking with tools.
彼はピッキングの技術を持っている。
He has lock-picking skills.
To clean or remove something from a body part using a finger or tool.
Don't pick your nose in public. · He picked his teeth after the meal.
Specific phrase for 'pick one's nose'.
人前で鼻をほじるのは失礼だ。
It's rude to pick your nose in public.
To pick one's teeth, often with a toothpick.
彼は爪楊枝で歯をほじった。
He picked his teeth with a toothpick.
When 'pick up' means to meet and collect a person, do not use 拾う (hirou), which is for objects. Use 迎えに行く (mukae ni iku) or 迎える (mukaeru).
友達を駅に迎えに行った。
I picked up my friend at the station.
摘む (tsumu) is for small, delicate items like flowers or tea leaves, often pinched with fingertips. もぐ (mogu) is for larger fruits or vegetables that require twisting or pulling off a stem.
トマトをもぐのを手伝って。
Help me pick tomatoes.
Don't pick your scab.
鼻をほじるのはやめなさい。
Stop picking your nose.
I picked a hair off my clothes.
To pick something up and lift it; emphasizes the action of raising.
落ちた本を拾い上げた。
I picked up the fallen book.
彼女は彼をからかうのが好きだ。
She likes to pick on him.
To pick a quarrel by making a false accusation or finding fault.
彼はいつも言いがかりをつけてくる。
He always picks a quarrel with me.