How to say "plant" in Japanese
Choosing the right word
- 植物しょくぶつnounThe noun for plants as living things — trees, flowers, grasses — and, by extension, vegetation. Use it whenever 'plant' means flora, as in botany, gardening, or descriptions of nature.
- 植えるうえるichidan verb, transitive verbThe verb 'to plant': putting seeds, seedlings, or trees into the ground to grow. It also covers growing and raising, so it serves for flowers in a garden or crops in a field.
- 工場こうじょうnounFor 'plant' in the industrial sense — a factory, mill, or workshop — this is the word. It names the facility itself, while プラント covers the machinery and equipment.
- nounA loanword for 'plant' as equipment and machinery — the apparatus of an industrial installation rather than the facility itself. It never refers to a living plant; that is 植物.
- 植え付けるうえつけるichidan verb, transitive verbA compound verb meaning to plant or transplant: putting a plant into the ground, or moving one and setting it in new soil. The transplanting sense is what distinguishes it from plain 植える.
Use 植物 for plants as living things, 「植える」 or 「植え付ける」 for the verb of putting them in the ground, 工場 for a plant as an industrial facility, and 「プラント」 for plant meaning equipment and machinery.
Usage comparisons are AI-assisted and cross-checked by multiple models; for study reference only
Japanese equivalents
- 植物しょくぶつplant
- 植えるうえるto plant
- 工場こうじょうfactory
- プラントplant (i.e. equipment, machinery, etc.)
- 植え付けるうえつけるto plant
- 生けるいけるto arrange (flowers)
- まくto sow
- 植え込むうえこむto plant
- 製作所せいさくしょworks
- 大型機械おおがたきかいheavy machinery
- 仕掛けるしかけるto set (traps)
- 突き立てるつきたてるto plant (in the ground, snow, etc.)
- 作り付けるつくりつけるto plant
- 挿すさすto plant (a cutting)
- 突っ立てるつったてるto plant (in the ground)
- しつけるto plant (esp. rice seedlings)
See also
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