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97 Animals in Japanese (with Audio and PDF)

We talk about animals a lot more than we realize: We have our lion’s share of animal idioms, we give humans animal characteristics and we gush about our pets.

If you’re studying Japanese, you’ll need to know at least a few animal terms, since Japanese people are just like everyone else when it comes to our mutual obsession with fuzzy creatures.

Common Pets in Japanese

dog and cat in japan

JapaneseRomajiEnglish
フェレット ferettoferret
ハムスター hamusutāhamster
ハリネズミ harinezumihedgehog
inudog
カメ kameturtle
子猫 konekokitten
子犬 koinupuppy
nekocat
nezumimouse / rat
オウム ōmuparrot
sakanafish
ニワトリ toribird
usagirabbit

Farm Animals in Japanese

cows in a farm in japan

JapaneseRomajiEnglish
butapig
hitsujisheep
niwatorichicken
kamoduck
ロバ robadonkey
七面鳥 shichimenchōturkey
umahorse
(ウシ) ushicow
山羊 yagigoat

Sea Creatures in Japanese

bluefin tuna in japan

JapaneseRomajiEnglish
アザラシ azarashiseal
エビ ebishrimp
ハマグリ hamaguriclam
イルカ irukadolphin
イカ ikasquid
伊勢エビ ise-ebilobster
カキ kakioyster
ヒトデ hitodestarfish
kanicrab
クラゲ kuragejellyfish
kujirawhale
マンタレイ manta reimanta ray
ナマコ namakosea cucumber
ロブスター robusutālobster
sameshark
タツノオトシゴ tatsunootoshigoseahorse
タコ takooctopus
海亀 umigamesea turtle
ウナギ unagieel
ウニ unisea urchin

Animals with Wings in Japanese

sparrows in japan

JapaneseRomajiEnglish
蝶々 chōchōbutterfly
フクロウ fukurouowl
gamoth
hatopigeon/dove
(ハヤブサ) hayabusafalcon
(カラス) karasucrow
蜜蜂 mitsubachibee
suzumesparrow
ツバメ tsubameswallow
tsurucrane
takahawk
washieagle

Wild Animals in Japanese

snow monkey in japan

JapaneseRomajiEnglish
穴熊 anagumabadger
inoshishiwild boar
イタチ itachiweasel
キリン kiringiraffe
kitsunefox
コウモリ kōmoribat
kumabear
ニホンザル nihonzarusnow monkey
ōkamiwolf
パンダ pandapanda
sarumonkey
鹿 shikadeer
ライオン raionlion
tanukiraccoon dog
toratiger
elephant

Reptiles and Amphibians in Japanese

japanese toad

JapaneseRomajiEnglish
hebisnake
ヒキガエル hikigaerutoad
イモリ imorinewt
カエル kaerufrog
トカゲ tokagelizard
ワニ wanicrocodile
ヤモリ yamorigecko

Small Critters in Japanese

grasshopper in japan

JapaneseRomajiEnglish
青虫 aomushicaterpillar
ariant
gamoth
ゴキブリ gokiburicockroach
hotarufirefly
kamosquito
kaikosilkworm
カマキリ kamakiripraying mantis
カタツムリ katatsumurisnail
バッタ battagrasshopper
甲虫 kōchubeetle
コオロギ kōrogicricket
蜘蛛 kumospider
ミミズ mimizuearthworm
ムカデ mukadecentipede
ノミ nomiflea
大雀蜂 ōsuzumebachiJapanese giant hornet
semicicada
てんとう虫 tentōmushiladybug
トンボ tonbodragonfly
夜蛾 yaganight moth

Animal-related Words in Japanese

lucky cat in japan

JapaneseRomajiEnglish
動物 dōbutsuanimals
動物園 dōbutsuenzoo
hanefeathers
higewhiskers
hizumehooves
kefur
kibafang / tooth
kuchibashibeak
前足 maeashifront legs
招き猫 manekinekolucky cat
水掻き mizukakiweb / flipper
猫カフェ neko kafēcat cafe
o (formal)tail
しっぽ shippo (casual)tail
水族館 suizokukanaquarium
tsumeclaws
urokoscales
後ろ足 ushiroashiback legs

You can even check out animal sounds in Japanese here:

https://www.fluentu.com/blog/japanese/japanese-animal-sounds/

Why Should I Learn Japanese Animal Words?

Need some more convincing? Here are three crucial reasons to add some animal words to your Japanese vocabulary:

  • We talk about animals and animal-related things more than we realize in everyday conversation. If you want to become more fluent, you’ll need to know these words at some point.
  • Bulking up your vocabulary list will only increase your fluency in Japanese. Having a hefty vocabulary is a major part of improving fluency on your language-learning journey.
  • Some Japanese animal words are difficult to pronounce or challenging to write, making them an ideal challenge for those who want to reach a new level in Japanese. Japanese nouns, including animal words, may have complicated kanji or be difficult to pronounce.

What better way to improve your Japanese than to challenge yourself with more difficult words?

 

Animal words are pretty interesting, aren’t they? When it comes to Japanese, it’s interesting to see how the kanji for some words resemble the animal they describe. You can even look into zodiac signs in Japanese since they’re based on animals. Try to see these words in use to help you understand them in context, too, such as through the immersion program FluentU.

FluentU takes authentic videos—like music videos, movie trailers, news and inspiring talks—and turns them into personalized language learning lessons.

You can try FluentU for free for 2 weeks. Check out the website or download the iOS app or Android app.

P.S. Click here to take advantage of our current sale! (Expires at the end of this month.)

  FluentU Ad

From pets to insects, add the animal words above to your vocabulary list and learn them to bring your language one step closer to fluency… and nature!

And One More Thing...

If you love learning Japanese with authentic materials, then I should also tell you more about FluentU.

FluentU naturally and gradually eases you into learning Japanese language and culture. You'll learn real Japanese as it's spoken in real life.

FluentU has a broad range of contemporary videos as you'll see below:

learn-japanese-with-videos

FluentU makes these native Japanese videos approachable through interactive transcripts. Tap on any word to look it up instantly.

learn-japanese-with-songs

All definitions have multiple examples, and they're written for Japanese learners like you. Tap to add words you'd like to review to a vocab list.

learn-japanese-with-movies

And FluentU has a learn mode which turns every video into a language learning lesson. You can always swipe left or right to see more examples.

practice-japanese-with-adaptive-quizzes

The best part? FluentU keeps track of your vocabulary, and gives you extra practice with difficult words. It'll even remind you when it’s time to review what you’ve learned. You'll have a 100% personalized experience.

Start using the FluentU website on your computer or tablet or, better yet, download the FluentU app from the iTunes or Google Play store. Click here to take advantage of our current sale! (Expires at the end of this month.)

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