おしまい

Japanese

Alternative spellings
御しまい お仕舞い 御仕舞い お仕舞 御仕舞 お終い 御終い 御終 お了い 御了い 御了

Etymology

Compound of お (o-, honorific prefix) +‎ しまい (shimai, “ending, finishing”, the 連用形 (ren'yōkei, “continuative or stem form”) of verb しまう shimau, “to finish, to end”).

Pronunciation

• (Tokyo) おしまい [òshímáí] (Heiban – [0])
• IPA^(key): [o̞ɕima̠i]

Noun

おしまい • (oshimai) 

1. (colloquial) the end of something

   おしまい

   oshimai

   The End (displayed at the end of a movie)

2. (colloquial, figurative) the end of something in a particularly negative way

   笑(わら)ったらおしまいだよ。

   Warattara oshimai da yo.

   If you laugh, we're done for / it's all over / we're screwed.

3. (business) the closing of accounts at the end of a fiscal year, and preparations for the next fiscal year
4. (women's language) preparations for going out, getting made up
5. (historical) in the Shinagawa red-light district of the Edo period, a reservation for a prostitute (from the way that arrangements and scheduling would be finalized)

Usage notes

Most often spelled in hiragana.

Used in the verbal phrases おしまいにする (oshimai ni suru, “to bring something to a close, to finish or end something”, transitive), おしまいになる (oshimai ni naru, “to come to a close, to finish or end”, intransitive).

Derived terms

• おしまいのン (oshimai no n)