How to say "orphan" in Japanese

• 孤児こじJLPT N1approx.Common
  no-adjectiveThe straightforward word for an orphan: a child whose parents have died. Choose it whenever you simply mean 'an orphan', as when speaking of children left parentless by an accident, disaster or war.
  人々ひとびとはその孤児こじを哀あわれんだ。↗

  People took pity on the orphan.
• 遺児いじCommon
  nounThe same idea viewed from the deceased's side: the child, typically the deceased's own, whom that person has left behind. It fits phrases like 'the children he left behind' more than calling someone an orphan.

Use 孤児 for an orphan as such — a child whose parents have died; use 遺児 when presenting the child as the one a specific deceased person, usually a parent, has left behind.

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

• 孤児こじorphan
• 遺児いじorphan
• オーファンorphan
• 遺孤いこorphan
• 親なし子おやなしごparentless child
• 忘れ形見わすれがたみorphan
• 親なしおやなしparentless child