How to say "specimen" in Japanese
Choosing the right word
- nounMainly covers the 'sample' sense: a specimen or example taken to represent a whole, as in product samples or data samples. It is a loanword with a casual, practical feel rather than a scientific one.
- 標本ひょうほんnounThe standard word for a preserved or collected scientific specimen, such as a plant, insect, or rock kept for study in a museum or laboratory collection.
- 個体こたいno-adjectiveMeans an individual organism, and only incidentally a specimen: use it when 'specimen' refers to a single animal or plant as one countable individual in biology or ecology.
- 見本みほんno-adjectiveCovers 'specimen' in the everyday sense of a display sample or example item, such as a sample product, fabric swatch, or specimen page shown to customers.
- 検体けんたいnounA specimen specifically as an object to be examined, typically a medical or laboratory test sample such as blood or tissue submitted for analysis.
Choose 標本 for scientific collected specimens, 検体 for specimens under medical examination, 「サンプル」 for samples, 見本 for display samples, and 個体 for a single organism counted as an individual specimen.
Usage comparisons are AI-assisted and cross-checked by multiple models; for study reference only
Japanese equivalents
See also
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