How to say "cinema" in Japanese
Choosing the right word
- nounThe borrowed word for cinema, referring to movies or film as a medium and often seen in theatre names; for the building you visit to watch one, 映画館 is the usual word.
- 映画館えいがかんnounThe ordinary word for a cinema as a place: a building where films are shown to an audience. Use it whenever you mean going out somewhere to watch a movie, not the films themselves.その映画館は人々でいっぱいだった。↗The cinema was filled with people.
For cinema as films or the film medium, 「シネマ」 is the loanword choice, while 映画館 means the place itself — the theatre building you go to in order to watch a movie.
Usage comparisons are AI-assisted and cross-checked by multiple models; for study reference only
Japanese equivalents
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