How to say "hotel" in Japanese

Choosing the right word
  • ホテルJLPT N5approx.Common
    nounThe default word for a hotel: a commercial establishment offering rooms to travelers. Use it whenever you simply mean a hotel, whether booking, staying, or talking about the building.
    あなたはこのホテルのお客きゃくですか。↗
    Are you staying at this hotel?
  • 宿やどJLPT N3approx.Common
    nounA word for a place to stay — an inn or lodging — with hotel as one sense. When you simply mean a hotel, ホテル is the word you want; 宿 suits lodging and inns.
  • 宿舎しゅくしゃCommon
    nounCovers lodging and accommodation — a place where people are housed — more than a commercial hotel; its hotel sense is marginal, so for an ordinary hotel ホテル is the usual choice.
  • 泊まりとまりCommon
    nounReally denotes an overnight stay rather than the establishment itself; its inn and hotel senses come through that idea. For the hotel as a place or business, ホテル is the natural word.
  • 酒店さかだなCommon
    nounCovers hotel only in the Chinese setting — a hotel in China. Outside that context it is not the word you want; for an ordinary hotel, ホテル is the choice.

Use 「ホテル」 for an ordinary hotel, 宿 for lodging or an inn, 宿舎 for accommodation rather than a commercial hotel, 「泊まり」 for an overnight stay rather than the establishment, and 酒店 only for hotels in China.

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

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JLPT vocabulary levels are community estimates, not official (no official lists have been published since the 2010 revision).

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