Japanese word

男児

Pronunciation

Romajidanji

Meaning

  • nounboy

Example

医師は男児を診察しています。i shi wa dan ji o shin satsu shi te i ma su

The doctor is examining the boy.

Illustration for 男児 (boy)

More examples

先生が男児に名前を尋ねました。sen sei ga dan ji ni na mae o tazu ne ma shi ta

The teacher asked the boy his name.

Core concept

Describes a young male person whose age places him before adulthood.

Common phrases

  • 男児が生まれるdan ji ga u ma re ru

    a boy is born

  • 男児の成長dan ji no sei chō

    a boy's growth

  • 男児を育てるdan ji o soda te ru

    raise a boy

Similar words

男の子otokonoko: A common everyday term for a male child or young male person.
少年shōnen: A young male person in the period between childhood and adulthood.

Definition in Japanese

成人していない男性の子ども。sei jin shi te i na i dan sei no ko do mo

Word origin

男児 (danji) is formed from 男 (dan, "male") and 児 (ji, "child"), two characters used in Sino-Japanese compounds.

Usage tips

  • In speech, 男児 (danji) can sound official or report-like, while 男の子 (otokonoko) is the ordinary conversational term.

Opposites

  • 女児jojigirlnoun

Word lists with this word