Japanese word

周り

Pronunciation

Romajimawari

Meaning

  • nounarea around ___

Example

学校の周りに店があります。gak kō no mawa ri ni mise ga a ri ma su

There are shops around the school.

Illustration for 周り (area around ___)

More examples

家の周りを少し歩きました。ie no mawa ri o suko shi aru ki ma shi ta

I walked around my house a little.

Core concept

Describes the space surrounding a person, object, or place, including the nearby area.

Common phrases

  • 周りの人mawa ri no hito

    people around you

  • 身の周りmi no mawa ri

    one's surroundings

  • 周りを見回すmawa ri o mi mawa su

    look around

Similar words

近くchikaku: It refers to a place or area close to a person, object, or place.
周辺shūhen: It refers to a place's surrounding area as a whole, often in descriptions of its nearby features.

Definition in Japanese

ある物や場所を中心とした、その近くの範囲。a ru mono ya ba sho o chū shin to shi ta so no chika ku no han i

Word origin

周り (mawari) is the noun form of 周る (mawaru), meaning "to go around" or "to surround," and it came to mean the surrounding area.

Usage tips

  • In everyday Japanese, this noun commonly follows a place name to describe nearby streets, buildings, and other features rather than only its exact boundary.

Other meanings

  • vicinitynoun

Opposites

Word lists with this word