サボテン

also: シャボテン

サ

ボ

テ

ン

Freq.FrequencyTop 20,000

Meanings

noun

cactus

usually written using kana alone

General term for cactus plants. The word is usually written in katakana.

窓まど辺べに小ちいさなサボテンを置おいている。
I keep a small cactus by the window.
サボテンは水みずをあまり必ひつ要ようとしない。
Cacti don't need much water.

See all 26 example sentences ›

Usage patterns

〈人ひと〉がサボテンを育そだてるto grow/keep a cactus (as a houseplant)
祖そ母ぼは窓まど辺べでサボテンを育そだてている。
My grandmother keeps a cactus by the window.
サボテンにとげがあるa cactus has spines/thorns
サボテンには鋭するどいとげがあるので気きをつけて。
Be careful, cacti have sharp spines.

Kanji

覇hegemony, supremacy, leadership
王king, rule, magnate
樹timber, trees, wood
仙hermit, wizard, cent
人person
掌palm of hand, rule, administer

Don't confuse with

仙せん人にん
仙人掌 shares the kanji 仙人 but is simply an ateji spelling for サボテン (cactus) and has no connection to the mystical meaning of 仙人.

Counted with

本ほんN5
book; volume; script · this; present; current; in question · main; head; principal · real; genuine; regular; proper · counter for long cylindrical objects; counter for films, TV shows, etc.; counter for goals, home runs, etc.; counter for telephone calls

Written forms

サボテンUsage89%
Standard katakana spelling; the word is usually written in kana.
シャボテンUsage10%
Older variant reading; rarely used in modern Japanese.
仙人掌Usage1%
rarely-used kanji form
- サボテン
  Rare kanji form; the reading サボテン is a jukujikun.
- シャボテン
覇王樹さぼてん
rarely-used kanji form
Rare kanji form; the reading サボテン is a jukujikun.

Etymology

Commonly explained as a development from Portuguese sabão, “soap,” combined with Japanese 手. The name was first applied to prickly-pear cactus, whose sap was reportedly used for washing, but details of the formation remain disputed.