How to say "member" in Japanese
Choosing the right word
- nounA member of a team, group, or organization; it also covers participants and attendees, and in sports the lineup. The broad, all-purpose choice when the people in question simply belong to something.
- 員いんnoun, noun (suffix)Nominally 'member', but in practice it is the 'member' element seen inside other words for members of organizations; on its own it is seldom the word you want.
- 会員かいいんnounA member of an association, society, or similar organized body; it can also refer to the membership as a whole. The nuance is belonging through membership in an organization.
- 部員ぶいんno-adjectiveA member of a club or society; it can also mean the staff of a department. The word to reach for when the group in question is specifically a club or society.
- 要素ようそnounNot about people: the technical term for an element of an array or other data structure — the computing sense of 'member'. For groups of people it is not the word you want.
Use 「メンバー」 for people belonging to a team or group, 会員 for members of an association or organization, 部員 for club and society members, 要素 for members of data structures, and 員 chiefly inside other words.
Usage comparisons are AI-assisted and cross-checked by multiple models; for study reference only
Japanese equivalents
- メンバーmember
- 員いんmember
- 会員かいいんmember
- 部員ぶいんstaff
- 組員くみいんmember (esp. of a criminal organization)
- 組子くみこmember (of a group led by a kumigashira)
- 成員せいいんmember
- 研究分担者けんきゅうぶんたんしゃmember (of a research project)
- メンmember
- 加入者かにゅうしゃaffiliate
- 加盟者かめいしゃparticipant
- 構成員こうせいいんmembers
- 部材ぶざいcomponent
- 要素ようそelement (e.g. in array)
- 分子ぶんしelement (of a group)
- いっかくpillar (of a group, system, etc.)
- 士しperson (in a certain profession, esp. licensed)
See also
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