hymn; psalm
Christian religious song. Used for both traditional hymns and contemporary worship music.
We sang hymns at the Sunday service.
She played the accompaniment for the hymn on the piano.
賛美歌 is the general term for a Christian hymn, while コラール specifically denotes the German Lutheran chorale tradition associated with composers like Bach.
賛美歌 refers specifically to Christian hymns sung in church, while 賛歌 is a broader term for any song of praise, religious or secular.
キャロル refers specifically to a festive Christmas song, while 賛美歌 is a general term for a religious hymn sung in church at any time of year.
Standard modern spelling. Used in news and common contexts.
Variant using 讃 instead of 賛. Seen in some hymn books and older texts.
Rarely used kanji form with 讚.
Compound of 賛美 (さんび, 'praise') and 歌 (か, 'song'). The kanji 賛 means 'approve/praise' and 美 means 'beauty', together conveying the idea of praising beauty or God.