How to say "detection" in Japanese
Choosing the right word
- 発見はっけんnoun, suru verb, transitive verbThe general word for finding or detecting something that exists, whether by search or by chance; the default choice for detecting problems, errors, or illness, as in early detection of disease.
- 検出けんしゅつnoun, suru verb, transitive verbDetection in a technical or scientific sense: instruments, sensors, tests, or software registering the presence of something, such as a substance in a sample or a signal in data.
- 発覚はっかくnoun, suru verb, intransitive verbCovers detection only in the sense of a plot, fraud, or other wrongdoing coming to light or being uncovered; the natural word when a scandal or misdeed is exposed.
- 探知たんちnoun, suru verb, transitive verbDetection in the sense of locating distant or hidden objects by technical means, as with radar or sonar; narrower than 検出, and not the word for detecting substances, errors, or wrongdoing.
- 露見ろけんnoun, suru verb, intransitive verbMeans a plot or misdeed coming to light and being exposed, much like 発覚; for detection in other senses it is seldom the word you want — really exposure or disclosure of wrongdoing.彼の罪は露見するだろう。↗His sin will find him out.
Use 発見 for finding something in general, 検出 for technical or instrument-based detection, 探知 for locating distant or hidden objects, and 発覚 (or, marginally, 露見) for plots and wrongdoing coming to light.
Usage comparisons are AI-assisted and cross-checked by multiple models; for study reference only
Japanese equivalents
See also
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