Hello, everyone. How are you?
Today, I’m going to introduce some of Japanese made “English” words. As you can see, these are not at all English but words coined in Japan. Can you guess what they actually mean?
１．コンセント(Konsento)
When a phone needs to be charged, you should ask 「コンセントはどこですか。」(Where is “Konsento”?)What does this word mean? It means “outlet” or “socket”. It is derived from “concentric plug”. When you come to Japan and ask for an “outlet” or “socket”, Japanese people may not know what you mean. Stick to the word “Konsento”.
２．ホッチキス(Hotchkiss)
This actually means “stapler”! Why do we call stapler “hotchkiss”? A hundred years ago, Japan imported the first staplers from a company called “hotchkiss”. Since then, the name stuck in Japan. When you need to use one, please say 「ホッチキス貸して下さい。」(May I borrow a hotchkiss please?)
３．
What would you call this in Japan? Is it アイスリーム (ice cream)? The answer is no. Nobody calls this ice cream in Japan. Instead we call this ソフトクリーム (soft cream). Ice cream in Japanese means a different type of frozen treat (the following picture).
When you would like to eat soft serve , it’s better to say 「ソフトクリーム食べに行こう！」(Let’s go eat soft cream!)
４．スキンシップ (Skinship)
This is how we use this word.
・親子のスキンシップはとても大切です。
It is very important to maintain “skinship” between parents and children.
・あの人、スキンシップがちょっと多いですね。
That person does a bit too much “skinship”.
This word means physical contact. In Japan, many feel uncomfortable engaging in physical contact unless it’s between very close friends or family. I would urge you to be very careful in this regard.
Were these words easy for you to guess? I’ll introduce more again when I come up with new ones!
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Natsumi
