Japanese word

幻想

Pronunciation

Romajigensō

Meaning

  • nounfantasy

Example

その物語は幻想の世界を描いています。so no monogatari wa gen sō no se kai o ega i te i ma su

The story depicts a world of fantasy.

Illustration for 幻想 (fantasy)

More examples

現実と幻想の境目が、次第に分からなくなりました。gen jitsu to gen sō no sakai me ga shi dai ni wa ka ra na ku na ri ma shi ta

The boundary between reality and fantasy gradually became unclear.

Core concept

Describes something created in the mind that feels vivid or real despite lacking a basis in reality.

Common phrases

  • 幻想を抱くgen sō o ida ku

    harbor fantasies

  • 幻想にふけるgen sō ni fu ke ru

    indulge in fantasies

Similar words

空想kūsō: A mental image or idea that is invented rather than drawn from actual events.
夢想musō: A pleasant imagined picture of an ideal life or possible future.
妄想mōsō: An unfounded belief that is held as though it were true.

Definition in Japanese

現実にはないものを、実在するかのように思い描くこと。gen jitsu ni wa na i mo no o jitsu zai su ru ka no yō ni omo i ega ku ko to

Word origin

As a Sino-Japanese compound, 幻 (gen, "illusion") combines with 想 (sō, "thought") to express an unreal image or idea.

Usage tips

  • In English, fantasy often names a genre of stories with magic and imaginary worlds, while the Japanese noun also describes an unreal image or belief.

Other meanings

  • illusionnoun
  • visionnoun

Opposites

Related words

  • 幻想的gensōtekifantasticalna-adjective

Word lists with this word