How to say "pond" in Japanese
Choosing the right word
- 池いけnounThe default word for a pond: a small, still body of water such as you find in a park or garden. Use this for the ordinary English sense of 'pond' in almost any context.この前の夏にこの池は水がなくなりました。↗The pond dried up last summer.
- 沼ぬまnounPrimarily means marsh, swamp, wetland or bog, so it is usually not the word you want for 'pond'. Reach for it only when the water is shallow, stagnant and marshy rather than a clear pond.
- 堤つつみnounA poetical term glossed as reservoir or pond. Because of its literary flavour it is seldom the everyday word for 'pond'; choose it only when writing in a deliberately poetic register.
For an ordinary pond use 池; 沼 primarily means marsh or swamp and only loosely covers pond-like water; 堤 is a poetical word for pond or reservoir, not everyday usage.
Usage comparisons are AI-assisted and cross-checked by multiple models; for study reference only
Japanese equivalents
See also
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