How to say "scattering" in Japanese

Choosing the right word
  • 分散ぶんさんJLPT N1approx.Common
    noun, suru verb, transitive verb, intransitive verbFor dispersal in the sense of something being divided up and spread apart — risk spread across options, decentralization, and the statistical dispersion of values — rather than things physically flying apart.
  • 拡散かくさんJLPT N1approx.Common
    noun, suru verb, intransitive verbFor something spreading outward from a source to a wider area or audience — disseminating news or information, or a substance diffusing through a medium.
    Scientists are fighting to stem the spread of the AIDS virus.
  • 散布さんぷCommon
    noun, suru verb, transitive verbThe deliberate scattering or spraying of something over an area, such as seeds, fertilizer or pesticide; it implies someone intentionally distributing it, not things scattering on their own.
    彼かれらは果樹かじゅに農薬のうやくを散布さんぷしている。↗
    They are spraying the fruit trees.
  • 散乱さんらんCommon
    noun, prenominal modifier, suru verb, intransitive verbDescribes things lying scattered about in disorder — objects strewn around a room — or the physical scattering of light or particles in many directions.
    鏡かがみの破片はへんが床ゆかに散乱さんらんしていた。↗
    Fragments of the mirror were scattered on the floor.
  • 飛散ひさんCommon
    noun, suru verb, intransitive verbThings flying off or being driven apart in all directions — dust or debris carried on the wind, pollen, or enemies scattering before an assault.
    カーペットには埃ほこりを吸収きゅうしゅうするダストポケット効果こうかがあり、埃ほこりの飛散ひさんを防ふせぐ特長とくちょうがあるのだが、それが仇あだになった結果けっかといえる。↗
    Carpets have the effect of a dust pocket, with merit of sucking up dust and stopping it flying around, but you can say that effect backfires.

分散 divides something up, as with risk or workload; 拡散 spreads things outward, like information; 散布 is deliberate sprinkling or spraying; 散乱 is things strewn about or scattering in many directions; 飛散 is things flying off in the wind.

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

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JLPT vocabulary levels are community estimates, not official (no official lists have been published since the 2010 revision).

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