湖みずうみ

み

ず

う

み

Common wordJLPTN4Freq.FrequencyTop 5,000

Meanings

1

noun

lake

A large body of water surrounded by land.

この湖みずうみはとても深ふかい。
This lake is very deep.

夏なつになると湖みずうみで泳およぐ人ひとが多おおい。

In summer, many people swim in the lake.

Usage patterns

湖みずうみを渡わたるto cross a lake
船ふねで湖みずうみを渡わたった。
We crossed the lake by boat.
湖みずうみのほとりに〈物もの〉があるthere is something by the lakeside
湖みずうみのほとりに小ちいさな小こ屋やがある。
There is a small cabin by the lakeside.
湖みずうみが凍こおるthe lake freezes
冬ふゆになると湖みずうみが凍こおる。
The lake freezes in winter.
湖みずうみに浮うかぶto float on the lake
白しろい鳥とりが湖みずうみに浮うかんでいる。
White birds are floating on the lake.

Kanji

湖lake

Related words· 7

池いけN5
池 refers to a pond, usually smaller and often man-made, whereas 湖 is a larger, typically natural lake.
沼ぬまN1
沼 describes a swamp or marsh that is shallower and more vegetated than a 湖, which is a deeper, open body of water.
湖こ沼しょう
湖 refers to a single lake, whereas 湖沼 is the collective term covering lakes and marshes together.
潟かた
湖 is the general word for an inland lake, while 潟 specifically denotes a coastal lagoon separated from the sea by a sandbar.

Show 3 more

レーク
湖 is the everyday Japanese word for a lake, while レーク is a katakana borrowing used mainly in brand names, tourism, or English-influenced contexts.
湖こ水すい
湖 is the everyday word for 'lake', while 湖水 is more formal or literary and can emphasize the lake's water itself.
内ない海かい
湖 is the modern standard word for a lake, having replaced the archaic 内海 (うちうみ) sense found in old texts.

Don't confuse with

海うみN5
湖 is a lake, a body of fresh water, while 海 is the sea or ocean, typically salt water.

Written forms

湖みずうみUsage98%
Standard kanji spelling for 'lake'.
みずうみUsage2%

Etymology

The reading みずうみ is a compound of 水 (みず, 'water') and 海 (うみ, 'sea'), literally 'water sea'. The kanji 湖 is a phono-semantic compound with 氵 (water) and 胡 (phonetic, also suggesting 'vast').