大人おとな

お

と

な

Common wordJLPTN5Freq.FrequencyTop 1,000

Meanings

noun, noun which may take the genitive case particle 'no', na-adjective

Refers to a person who has reached adulthood, or describes something as mature or adult-like. Can be used as a noun, with の, or as a な-adjective.

大人おとなになったら、何なにになりたいですか。
What do you want to be when you grow up?
彼かれは大人おとなの対たい応おうをした。
He handled it in a mature way.

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Expressions· 9

いい大人おとなgrown adult; person old enough to know better
大だいの大人おとなgrown-up; full-fledged adult; sensible adult
大人おとなになるgrow up; become an adult
大人おとなの事じ情じょうcertain reasons; circumstances beyond explanation; adult matters
大人おとなの対たい応おうadult response; mature handling; grown-up behavior

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大人おとなの都つ合ごうadult reasons; certain circumstances; professional constraints
大人可愛いおとなかわいいadult-cute; grown-up but girlish
大人おとなのおもちゃadult toy; sex toy

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Kanji

大large, big
人person

Related words

成せい人じんN3
成人 is the formal or legal term for reaching adulthood, often used in official contexts like 成人式, while 大人 is the everyday, casual word for a grown-up.
一いち人にん前まえN1
大人 is the general word for 'adult', while 一人前 stresses being recognized as fully capable or independent.
アダルト
大人 is the everyday Japanese word for a grown person, while アダルト is a loanword often used in compound nouns or to mark mature/adult-oriented content.

Opposites· 7

子こ供どもN5
子供 means 'child', the direct opposite of 大人 ('adult').
キッズ
キッズ refers to children, while 大人 refers to adults, a contrast commonly seen in labels like キッズサイズ vs 大人サイズ.
ガキ
大人 means 'adult,' the direct opposite of ガキ's meaning 'child/brat.'

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キッド
大人 means an adult, the direct opposite of キッド, which refers to a child or young person.
童わらべ
大人 means 'adult', the natural opposite of 童, which refers to a child in an old-fashioned or literary sense.
子こ供どもたち
子供たち means children as a group, while 大人 refers to adults, the natural opposite age category.
お子こ様さま
大人 'adult' contrasts with お子様 'child', marking the basic child/adult distinction the word conveys.

Don't confuse with

大人おとなしいN3
大人しい shares the kanji 大人 but means 'quiet' or 'well-behaved', not 'adult-like' as in 大人.

Counted with

人にん
counter for people

Word family· 15

大人おとな気げ
adultness; maturity
大人おとなしいN3
gentle; quiet; docile; well-behaved · quiet (color/pattern); sober; subdued
大人おとなびる
look grown-up; act mature; be adult-like
大人おとな版ばん
adult version; adult edition
大人おとな用よう
for adults; for use by adults

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おとなしく
meekly; obediently; quietly
大人おとなぶる
act like an adult; pretend to be grown-up
大人おとな向むけ
for adults; aimed at adults
大人おとな買がい
buying in bulk like an adult; splurging on collectibles
大人おとなげない
immature; childish; not acting one's age
大人おとなしやか
gentle; quiet; demure; mild-mannered
大人おとなじみた
precocious; unchildlike; early-blooming
大人おとなじみる
to grow up; to become adult; to start acting like an adult

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Written forms

大人おとなUsage91%
gikun (meaning-based reading) or jukujikun
Standard kanji spelling; the reading おとな is a jukujikun (special kanji reading).
おとなUsage7%
gikun (meaning-based reading) or jukujikun
オトナUsage2%

Etymology

The kanji 大 (big) and 人 (person) combine to mean 'big person', i.e., an adult. The reading おとな is a jukujikun, a native Japanese word assigned to the kanji compound.