Translation guide
The material from trees, used for building, burning, or making things. Also refers to a small forested area.
The hard fibrous substance that makes up the trunk and branches of a tree, used for construction, fuel, or crafting.
The most common word for wood as a material. Can also mean 'tree' in some contexts, but context usually makes it clear.
This desk is made of wood.
木を切って薪にする。
Cut wood to make firewood.
Refers specifically to wood as a building material or lumber. More formal and technical than 木.
この家は国産の木材を使っています。
This house uses domestically produced wood.
Lumber or timber, often cut and prepared for construction. Similar to 木材 but more common in spoken contexts.
材木を運ぶトラック。
A truck carrying lumber.
Wood used as fuel for fires.
Specifically firewood, wood cut and split for burning.
冬のために薪をたくさん用意した。
I prepared a lot of firewood for the winter.
Firewood, often used in a more rustic or traditional context. Can also be written as 焚き木.
山でたきぎを拾う。
Gather firewood in the mountains.
A small area of trees, smaller than a forest.
Generally means 'forest', but can be used for a wood or grove, especially when contrasted with larger forests. Often implies a natural, dense area.
家の裏に小さな森があります。
There is a small wood behind the house.
A grove or small wood, often planted or managed. Smaller and less wild than 森.
A type of golf club originally made of wood.
Loanword from English, used in golf terminology.
彼は3番ウッドで打った。
He hit with a 3-wood.
The word 木 can mean both 'tree' and 'wood'. Context usually clarifies: if you say 木を切る (ki o kiru), it means 'cut a tree' or 'cut wood'. To be specific, use 木材 (mokuzai) for wood as material and 木 (ki) or 樹木 (jumoku) for living trees.
森 (mori) is a larger, denser, more natural forest, often with a spiritual or wild connotation. 林 (hayashi) is a smaller, often cultivated grove or wood. For a small wood near a house, 林 or 小さな森 is appropriate.
Take a walk in the bamboo grove.
A copse or thicket of mixed trees, often near villages. Used for firewood or charcoal making.
雑木林でクワガタを捕まえた。
I caught a stag beetle in the copse.