むし・虫・蟲mushi[0]heiban (flat)

JLPT N4approx.Common
Definitions
  1. nouninsect; bug; cricket; moth
    彼女かのじょは虫むしが大嫌だいきらいだ。↗
    She has a strong dislike of insects.
  2. nounworm; roundworm
    鳥とりは虫むしを探さがしていた。↗
    The bird was looking for worms.
  3. nounthing inside one's body believed to influence one's thoughts and feelings; (one's) unconsciousfrom a traditional belief of an internal insect
    彼かれは確たしかにハンサムで頭あたまもいいかもしれないけど、どこか虫むしの好すかないところがあるの。↗
    Certainly he is handsome and intelligent, but there is something about him that I can't like.
  4. nounnervousness; fretfulness
  5. nounperson devoted to one thing; single-minded person
  6. nounvalve core
  7. noun, hanafudamushi (type of game played with a stripped deck)
Synonyms & antonyms
  • Synonym昆虫こんちゅうWrittenLiterary term for insects as a class or category; use in formal, written, or scientific contexts, where the everyday 虫 would sound too casual.

Choose 虫 for insects in everyday speech, including specific creatures such as crickets and moths; choose 昆虫 for insects as a category in formal, literary, or scientific contexts.

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

Japanese definitions
  1. (脊椎動物せきついどうぶつを除のぞく)小動物しょうどうぶつ。狭義きょうぎでは特とくに、昆虫こんちゅう及およびその幼虫ようちゅう。
  2. 蛇へび。
  3. 体内たいないにあって、人間にんげんの心的しんてき状態じょうたいを左右さゆうすると考かんがえられるもの。
  4. 奇異きいな心的しんてき傾向けいこうを持もつ人ひと。何なんかに熱中ねっちゅうする人ひと。
English equivalents

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

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