Translation guide
The English word 'random' can describe something lacking a pattern, something unexpected, or an arbitrary choice. This guide covers natural Japanese expressions for these meanings.
Describing something that occurs without a predictable pattern, sequence, or organization.
A loanword from English, widely used in casual and technical contexts to mean 'random' in the sense of lacking order or being selected by chance.
Please choose numbers at random.
This game has many random elements.
A formal term meaning 'random' or 'without intention', often used in statistics, research, or official contexts.
We surveyed a randomly selected sample.
Means 'random' in a negative sense: haphazard, nonsensical, or without any logic. Often used for actions or statements that are careless or irresponsible.
What he says is random nonsense.
Don't write down random numbers.
Literally 'as one's hand touches', meaning doing something randomly or indiscriminately, often with a sense of urgency or lack of selectivity.
He read books at random, whatever he could get his hands on.
Describing something that happens suddenly and without warning, often surprising.
The most common word for 'suddenly' or 'unexpectedly'. It can convey the idea of something random happening without prior indication.
He showed up randomly / out of the blue.
A casual adverb meaning 'suddenly' or 'without warning', often used when something happens abruptly and unexpectedly.
Literally 'without context', used when someone says or does something completely unrelated to the current situation, i.e., random.
Referring to a choice made without any particular reason, or an unspecified item from a group.
Means 'randomly' or 'without much thought' when making a choice. Can also mean 'suitable', but in this context it implies a casual, arbitrary selection.
Can also mean 'appropriate' or 'half-hearted' depending on context. When used to mean 'random', it often carries a nuance of not caring much about the choice.
Just pick one at random.
A common phrase meaning 'any one is fine', used when the specific choice doesn't matter. It conveys the idea of randomness through indifference.
Just pick any random one, hurry up.
A formal term meaning 'arbitrary' or 'optional', used in technical, mathematical, or official contexts.
ランダム is the most common and neutral word for 'random' in modern Japanese. 無作為 is formal and used in statistics or research. でたらめ implies a negative, careless randomness, like nonsense or haphazard actions.
Please present in a random order.
Random sampling is fundamental in statistics.
His answer was random nonsense.
While ランダム is widely understood, using it in every situation can sound unnatural. For unexpected events, use 突然 or いきなり. For arbitrary choices, 適当に or どれでもいい may be more natural.
いきなり雨が降り出した。
It started raining randomly / out of nowhere.
He randomly started talking about the past.
任意の数字を入力してください。
Please enter an arbitrary number.