Translation guide
The English verb "stay" covers several distinct meanings, each with different natural Japanese expressions. The most common meanings are remaining in a place, continuing a state, and lodging somewhere. Direct translation often fails; context determines the best choice.
To not leave a location; to continue being somewhere.
The most basic verb for animate beings remaining in a place. Use with に for location.
Please stay here.
He stays at home.
More formal/literary; implies staying put, often against a desire to leave. Intransitive.
To remain behind when others leave. Intransitive.
Formal term for a temporary stay, often used for travel or business.
I will stay in Tokyo for a week.
To sleep at a place (hotel, friend's house) for a short period.
To stay overnight. Intransitive. Use に for the place.
To remain in a certain condition or keep doing something.
Attach to past tense or noun+の to mean 'stay as is'. Often used with いる/おく.
Leave it as it is. (Let it stay like that.)
To halt movement or keep someone/something from going.
Transitive verb: to stop something/someone. Use を.
To put off an action or decision.
Formal 'postpone'. Not a direct translation of 'stay', but used in contexts like 'stay of execution'.
To provide structural support; to keep something from falling.
To support physically or emotionally. Not a direct translation of 'stay' but used for 'stay a structure'.
For things remaining in a place, use ある (aru) instead of いる. いる is only for people and animals.
The book stays on the desk.
泊まる is for overnight stays (hotel, friend's house). 滞在する is broader: staying in a city for days/weeks, not necessarily sleeping there. 滞在する is more formal.
その場にとどまった。
I stayed where I was.
Only he stayed behind.
I stayed at a friend's house.
Will you stay at a hotel?
Formal equivalent of 泊まる, used in business or official contexts.
Guests staying at our hotel.
Can also mean lodging, but broader (temporary stay in a city/country).
I'm staying in Kyoto.
窓を開けたまま寝た。
I slept with the window open. (The window stayed open.)
Attach to verb stem to mean 'keep doing'. For staying in an action.
He stayed talking. / He kept talking.
Can be used figuratively: stay in memory, stay within limits.
The scene stays in my mind.
I stopped him from leaving. (I made him stay.)
Specifically to detain or persuade someone to stay.
I was asked to stay (when I tried to leave).
The court's decision was stayed.
Noun meaning 'respite' or 'grace period'. Used in legal contexts like 'stay of execution'.
A stay of execution.
Stay the wall with a prop.
Noun: a prop, a stay (nautical/architectural). Rare outside technical fields.
A stay for the mast.
東京に滞在するが、ホテルには泊まらない。
I'm staying in Tokyo but not staying at a hotel.
The pattern 〜まま is very common for 'stay in a state'. It often pairs with にしておく (leave it) or でいる (remain).
Please leave it as it is. (Let it stay like this.)
Stay with me.
He stayed calm.