Japanese word

挑戦

Pronunciation

Romajichōsen

Meaning

  • nounchallenge

Example

新しいことに挑戦します。atara shi i ko to ni chō sen shi ma su

I will take on something new.

Illustration for 挑戦 (challenge)

More examples

毎日少しずつ挑戦を重ねています。mai nichi suko shi zu tsu chō sen o kasa ne te i ma su

I am taking on challenges little by little every day.

Core concept

Expresses the act of stepping into a difficult or unfamiliar task in order to accomplish it.

Common phrases

  • 挑戦するchō sen su ru

    take on a challenge

Similar words

チャレンジcharenji: A commonly used casual term for an effort to achieve a difficult or unfamiliar goal.
試みkokoromi: An effort to do something that may be new, difficult, or neither.
取り組みtorikumi: Ongoing work toward completing a task or solving a problem over time.

Definition in Japanese

難しいことや経験のないことを、実現しようとして取り組むこと。muzuka shi i ko to ya kei ken no na i ko to o jitsu gen shi yō to shi te to ri ku mu ko to

Word origin

挑戦 (chōsen) is a Sino-Japanese compound of 挑 (chō, "challenge") and 戦 (sen, "battle"), with both characters contributing to its sense of facing a task.

Usage tips

  • The noun 挑戦 (chōsen) is common in phrases about trying something new, such as a new sport, skill, or personal goal.

Other meanings

  • attemptnoun

Opposites

Related words

  • 挑戦者chōsenshachallengernoun
  • 挑戦的chōsentekichallengingna-adjective

Word lists with this word