家や主ぬし

also: いえぬし · いえあるじ

や

ぬ

し

Common wordJLPTN2Freq.FrequencyTop 50,000

Meanings

noun

landlord; landlady

Only with reading やぬし / いえぬし

Refers to the owner of a rented property, typically an apartment or house, from the tenant's perspective.

家や主ぬしに家や賃ちんを払はらう。
I pay the rent to the landlord.
隣となりの部屋へやの家や主ぬしはとても親しん切せつだ。
The landlord of the next room is very kind.

noun

house owner; homeowner; head of household

Refers to the person who owns the house they live in, or the head of a household. Not necessarily a landlord.

彼かれはその家いえの家や主ぬしだ。
He is the owner of that house.
家や主ぬしとして、家か族ぞくを守まもる責せき任にんがある。
As the head of the household, he has a responsibility to protect his family.

See all 26 example sentences ›

Usage patterns

〈人ひと〉が家や主ぬしに相そう談だんするto consult one's landlord about something
水みず漏もれについて家や主ぬしに相そう談だんした。
I talked to the landlord about the water leak.
家や主ぬしが家や賃ちんを上あげるthe landlord raises the rent
来らい月げつから家や主ぬしが家や賃ちんを上あげるそうだ。
I heard the landlord is raising the rent starting next month.
家や主ぬしの許きょ可かを得えるto get the landlord's permission
ペットを飼かうには家や主ぬしの許きょ可かを得える必ひつ要ようがある。
You need to get the landlord's permission to keep a pet.

Kanji

家house, home, family
主lord, chief, master

Related words

大おお屋やN3sense 1
大家 is the everyday word for a landlord or landlady, especially of an apartment building, while 家主 is a slightly more formal term that can also mean a homeowner or head of household.
世せ帯たい主ぬし sense 2
世帯主 specifically means the registered head of a household for administrative purposes, while 家主 in this sense more broadly means the person who owns the house they live in.
地じ主ぬしN1
家主 broadly means the landlord or head of a rented house, whereas 地主 specifically emphasizes ownership of the underlying land.

Opposites

店たな子こ sense 1
店子 is the tenant who rents from the 家主 (landlord), making the two roles direct opposites.

Don't confuse with

飼かい主ぬしN2
飼い主 (owner of a pet/animal) and 家主 (landlord, owner of a house) both end in 主 meaning 'owner of ~' but refer to completely different things.

Written forms

家主Usage100%
- やぬし
  Standard kanji spelling. The reading やぬし is the most common and widely understood.
- いえぬし
  Less common reading, but still encountered. Can be used for both landlord and house owner senses.
- いえあるじ
  out-dated reading
  Obsolete kana reading. Not used in modern Japanese.
ヤヌシUsage<1%
いえぬし
いえあるじ
out-dated reading

Etymology

Compound of 家 (house) and 主 (master, owner). The reading やぬし uses the kun'yomi for both characters, while いえぬし and いえあるじ are alternative kun'yomi readings.