ねずみ

ね

ず

み

Common wordJLPTN3Freq.FrequencyTop 10,000

Meanings

1

usually written using kana alone

General word for small murid rodents; Japanese ねずみ often covers both English “mouse” and “rat,” with context deciding the size or species.

A mouse or rat appeared in the kitchen.

実じっ験けん用ようのネズミを飼し育いくしている。

They are keeping laboratory mice.

2

usually written using kana aloneabbreviation

Shortened color-name use from ねずみ色. It is most natural as a color label or abbreviation; ねずみ色 is clearer in ordinary prose.

〈場ば所しょ〉に鼠ねずみが出でるfor a mouse/rat to appear in a place
台だい所どころに鼠ねずみが出でた。
A mouse showed up in the kitchen.
鼠ねずみを捕とるto catch a mouse/rat
猫ねこが鼠ねずみを捕とった。
The cat caught a mouse.
鼠ねずみを退たい治じするto exterminate mice/rats
この店みせでは鼠ねずみを退たい治じするために罠わなを仕し掛かけている。
This shop sets traps to get rid of mice.
鼠ねずみが齧かじるfor a mouse/rat to gnaw on something
鼠ねずみがケーブルを齧かじってしまった。
A rat gnawed through the cable.

大たい山ざん鳴めい動どうして鼠ねずみ一いっ匹ぴきmuch ado about nothing; great cry and little wool; the mountain labored and brought forth a mouse
鳴なく猫ねこは鼠ねずみを捕とらぬempty vessels make the most sound; the meowing cat does not catch the mouse

マウスN3sense 1
マウス is a loanword typically used for a laboratory or pet mouse, or for a computer mouse, while ねずみ is the native, general word for the animal.
ねずみ色いろ sense 2
ねずみ色 is the full, unambiguous term for the color, while ねずみ alone is a shortened, more casual way of saying the same gray shade.
ラット sense 1
ラット specifically suggests a rat, especially in laboratory or scientific contexts, whereas ねずみ can loosely cover both rats and mice.
子ね
子 is the abstract zodiac term for the Rat used in dates, hours, and compass directions, while ねずみ is the ordinary word for the actual animal.
鼠ねずN1
鼠 is a bound abbreviation used mainly inside compounds, while ネズミ is the full, standalone word Japanese speakers use in everyday speech for 'mouse/rat'.

匹ひきN3
counter for small animals · counter for rolls of cloth · archaic counter for horses · roll of cloth

ハリネズミ
hedgehog
ドブネズミ
brown rat; Norway rat; sewer rat · dark gray; dirty gray · deceitful employee; unfaithful servant
てんじくねずみ
guinea pig
ジネズミ
white-toothed shrew; shrew (genus Crocidura)
ヒメネズミ
small Japanese field mouse

ねずみUsage20%
Standard everyday spelling; usually written in kana.
ネズミUsage56%
kana-only spelling
Katakana spelling is common for the animal, especially in biological, pet, or emphatic contexts.
鼠ねずみUsage24%
Attested kanji spelling; understandable and seen in some written contexts, but kana is more typical in ordinary modern writing.

Native Japanese word with the conventional kanji spelling 鼠. The historical derivation of the word itself is uncertain.

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