How to say "mercenary" in Japanese
Choosing the right word
- 傭兵ようへいnounThe literal sense: a soldier who fights for pay rather than for a cause, a hired soldier. Use this for actual mercenaries in war, history or fiction, not for a money-minded attitude.
- 打算的ださんてきna-adjectiveThe figurative sense: a calculating, self-interested person or attitude, acting from expected personal gain rather than principle or feeling. Typical in criticism of someone who helps only when it pays.
- 現金げんきんna-adjectiveAlso figurative: a person who is calculating and self-interested, with an eye to money. The word's basic meaning is 'cash', so it stresses the money side of being mercenary.
Use 傭兵 for the literal sense of a hired soldier; for the figurative sense of a money-minded, self-interested person or attitude, use 打算的 or 現金, which stress calculation and cash respectively.
Usage comparisons are AI-assisted and cross-checked by multiple models; for study reference only
Japanese equivalents
See also
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