How to say “neck” in Japanese | 首 (くび、kubi)

11.12.2023

The Japanese vocabulary「首 (くび、kubi)」means “neck.” Please learn the pronunciation and the example sentences.

Japanese Vocabulary and the Meaning

Key Word首
Hiraganaくび
Romaji Readingkubi
English Meaningneck

The Correct Japanese Pronunciations

Please learn the pronunciation by watching the attached video. You can also learn example sentences.

The Example Japanese Sentences

It is important to have skills in both non-honorific and honorific languages in order to use Japanese correctly.

Japanese Sentence首くびのマッサージを受うけた。
Romaji ReadingKubi no massāji o uketa.
English MeaningI got a neck massage. (Plain Form)
Japanese Sentence首のマッサージを受けました。
Romaji ReadingKubi no massāji o ukemashita.
English MeaningI got a neck massage. (Polite Form)
Japanese Sentence事務じむの仕し事ごとは、首くびと肩かたが凝こる。
Romaji ReadingJimu no shigoto wa, kubi to kata ga koru.
English MeaningOffice work makes my neck and shoulders stiff. (Plain Form)
Japanese Sentence事務の仕事は、首と肩が凝ります。
Romaji ReadingJimu no shigoto wa, kubi to kata ga korimasu.
English MeaningOffice work makes my neck and shoulders stiff. (Polite Form)
Japanese Sentence頭あたまを回まわす体操たいそうで、首くびを痛いためてしまった。
Romaji ReadingAtama o mawasu taisō de, kubi o itamete shimatta.
English MeaningUnfortunately, I hurt my neck doing head-turning exercises. (Plain Form)

If you do not know why I used “unfortunately” in this translation, please ask about it in our lesson or mail support. The key point is the difference between「痛いためた」and「痛いためてしまった」.

Japanese Sentence頭を回す体操で、首を痛めてしまいました。
Romaji ReadingAtama o mawasu taisō de, kubi o itamete shimaimashita.
English MeaningUnfortunately, I hurt my neck doing head-turning exercises. (Polite Form)
To Have Correct Japanese Language Skills

We teach Japanese to non-native Japanese learners. Judging from our experience, 90% of Japanese learners use incorrect Japanese and often speak rudely, even though they have lived in Japan for many years.

Therefore, we created two services. One is our “private Japanese conversation lesson” and the other is the “Daily Japanese Mail Support” service.

In the “private Japanese conversation lesson,” you can talk with a native Japanese teacher. Let us practice conversation together!

private Japanese conversation lesson

In the “Daily Japanese Mail Support" service, we will check your Japanese using email daily. Please show us the Japanese sentences that you wrote, your pronunciations, your handwritten Japanese characters, and so on. You can also ask us questions about Japanese.

Daily Japanese Mail Support

If you are a member of our private lesson or “Daily Japanese Mail Support,” we can check and correct your Japanese every day.

The details are on our website: https://ichiwebsite.com/

Body parts
Ichiyo's Japanese Learning Site