How to say "brass" in Japanese
Choosing the right word
- 真鍮しんちゅうnounThe usual word for brass, the yellow copper-zinc alloy used for fittings and ornaments. When you simply want to say something is made of brass, this is the word to reach for.
- nounA loanword for brass, the metal. It is also widely used in musical contexts, as in a brass band or the brass section of an orchestra, where this is the natural choice.
- 黄銅おうどうnounA more formal, technical term for brass as the copper-zinc alloy, found chiefly in engineering, metallurgical, or scientific writing. In ordinary conversation 真鍮 is far more likely.
- お足おあしnounColloquial slang for money — the informal English sense of 'brass' as in cash or dough, not the metal. Rare and casual; use it only in relaxed speech about spending or needing money.
For the metal 'brass' choose 真鍮 as the everyday word, 「ブラス」 mainly in music contexts, and 黄銅 in technical writing; for the slang sense 'money', use 「お足」.
Usage comparisons are AI-assisted and cross-checked by multiple models; for study reference only
Japanese equivalents
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