How to say "bubble" in Japanese

• バブルCommon
  nounThe loanword, used chiefly for the economic sense: a speculative bubble in which prices swell unsustainably and then burst. For literal bubbles in a liquid, use 泡.
• 泡あわJLPT N3approx.Common
  nounThe general word for literal bubbles: bubbles of air or gas rising in a liquid, and also foam, froth or suds, as from a fizzy drink or soapy water.
  くだける波なみが泡あわを作つくった。↗

  The breaking waves formed foam.
• 水泡すいほうCommon
  nounLiterally bubbles or foam on water, but seldom the word you want for an actual bubble: it appears mainly in figurative expressions describing plans, hopes or efforts that come to nothing.

Use 泡 for literal bubbles — air or gas in a liquid, foam, froth or suds; 「バブル」 is the loanword, chiefly for the economic sense of a speculative bubble; 水泡 is mainly figurative and seldom means an actual bubble.

Usage comparisons are AI-assisted and cross-checked by multiple models; for study reference only

• バブルbubble
• 泡あわbubble
• 水泡すいほうfoam
• 泡立つあわだつto bubble
• バブル現象バブルげんしょうbubble
• 泡が立つあわがたつto bubble
• 泡ぶくあわぶくbubble (esp. of saliva)
• すcavity (in old root vegetables, tofu, metal casting, etc.)
• 気泡きほう(air) bubble (esp. in a liquid)
• たこつぼbubble