How to say "sit" in Japanese

• 座るすわるJLPT N5approx.Common
  godan verb, intransitive verbThe default word for sitting down or being seated, and also for kneeling on the floor in the Japanese manner. Use it whenever you simply mean that someone sits, as in a chair, on a cushion, or at a meeting.
  数すう人にんの学生がくせいがベンチに座すわり、昼食ちゅうしょくを食たべていた。↗

  Some students were sitting on the bench and having lunch.
• 腰掛けるこしかけるJLPT N2approx.Common
  ichidan verb, intransitive verbAlso means to sit down, but suggests casually settling oneself onto a seat for a moment, as when resting on a bench or chair. It is a softer, more incidental alternative to 座る rather than a different sense of sitting.
  彼女かのじょは腰掛こしかけて足あしを組くんだ。↗

  She sat down and crossed her legs.

Use 「座る」 for the general act of sitting or taking a seat, including kneeling on the floor; 「腰掛ける」 also means to sit down but carries a lighter, more casual nuance of settling onto a seat.

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

• 座るすわるto sit (down)
• 腰掛けるこしかけるto sit (down)
• 座するざするto sit
• 座すざすto sit
• 座を占めるざをしめるto take a seat
• ＳＩＴエス・アイ・ティーstatic induction transistor
• かけるto take a seat