幸運・好運|こううんkouun[0]heiban (flat)
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Which spelling to use
幸運幸運 is the more common written form and the recommended choice for beginners; it appears as a kanji-only spelling.
好運好運 is a rarely used kanji-only variant, so learners will seldom encounter it and generally need not choose it when writing the word.
Definitions
- noun, na-adjectivegood luck; fortune
Conjugation
| Plain form | 幸運（こううん） |
|---|---|
| Polite (desu) | 幸運です（こううんです） |
| Negative (dewa nai) | 幸運ではない（こううんではない） |
| polite (dewa arimasen) | 幸運ではありません（こううんではありません） |
| Past (datta) | 幸運だった（こううんだった） |
| Past negative (dewa nakatta) | 幸運ではなかった（こううんではなかった） |
| Te form (de) | 幸運で（こううんで） |
| Adverbial (ni) | 幸運に（こううんに） |
| Conditional (nara) | 幸運なら（こううんなら） |
Common forms generated by rule; see the senses for honorific or irregular usage.
Synonyms & antonyms
- Synonym幸いさいわいNeutralCovers luck and 'luckily'; adverbial use as in 「幸い怪我はなかった」. Also expresses feeling honored, so its range is broader than 「幸運」.
- SynonymラッキーCasualLoanword for being lucky, common in speech, as in 「ラッキーだった」. Lighter in tone than 「幸運」.
- Synonym運うんNeutralLuck itself, good or bad, as in 「運がいい」 and 「運が悪い」; 「幸運」 only covers the good side.
- Synonym幸さちNeutralRead さち; means happiness or a harvest, as in 「海の幸」; leans literary and elegant.
- Synonym福ふくNeutralGood fortune or blessing, as in 「福の神」 and 「笑う門には福来る」; carries an auspicious feel.
- Synonym福徳ふくとくWrittenWritten word pairing good fortune with virtue or with wealth; mostly found in religious usage and in shop or company names.
- Synonym僥倖ぎょうこうWrittenWritten word for unexpected good luck or a lucky break; carries a sense of rarity and chance.
- RelatedついてるCasualColloquial for being in luck, as in 「今日はついてる」; use in casual settings.
- Related果報かほうNeutralMeans good luck; in Buddhism it refers to karmic retribution. Often seen in the proverb 「果報は寝て待て」.
- Related福運ふくうんWrittenWritten word for happiness and good fortune; rarely used in modern Japanese.
- Related盛運せいうんWrittenWritten word for flourishing, prosperous fortune; rarely used in modern Japanese.
- Related吉きちNeutralGood luck or auspiciousness, mostly in fortune slips and divination, as in 「大吉」; the opposite of 「凶」.
- Related昌運しょううんWrittenWritten word for thriving, prosperous fortune; almost never used today.
- Relatedいい目いいめCasualColloquial for good luck or a lucky break, as in 「いい目を見る」; originally a dice roll landing on the desired number.
- Antonym不運ふうんNeutralBad luck; the direct opposite of 「幸運」.
- Antonym不幸ふこうNeutralUnhappiness or disaster, also a death in the family; 「不運」 is the narrower term focused on bad luck.
- Antonym厄運やくうんWrittenWritten word for bad luck; rare today — say 「不運」 instead.
Use 「幸運」 for good luck in general. In casual speech, 「ラッキー」 or 「ついてる」 fits; for 'luckily,' use 「幸い」; for luck itself, good or bad, 「運」; for unexpected luck, 「僥倖」. The opposites are 「不運」 and 「不幸」. Others are narrower: 「吉」 for omikuji results, 「福」 for blessings, 「幸」 for happiness or harvests, 「いい目」 for a lucky break, 「果報」 for the proverb, 「福徳」 in religious contexts and shop names, and the written, now-rare 「福運」「盛運」「昌運」「厄運」.
Usage comparisons are AI-assisted and cross-checked by multiple models; for study reference only
Japanese definitions
Kanji in this word
See also
