時間

See also: 时间

Chinese

		o'clock; time; when o'clock; time; when; hour; season; period	interstice; separate; between interstice; separate; between; among; space; (measure word)
trad. (時間)		時	間
simp. (时间)		时	间

Etymology

Japanese 時間

Noun

(deprecated template usage) 時間

1. (uncountable) time (the inevitable passing of events from future to present then past)

   時間催人老。／时间催人老。  ―  Shíjiān cuī rén lǎo.  ―  Time ages us.

   時間還來得及。／时间还来得及。  ―  Shíjiān hái láidejí.  ―  All in good time.

   抓緊時間！／抓紧时间！  ―  Zhuājǐn shíjiān!  ―  Get a move on!

   浪費時間／浪费时间  ―  làngfèi shíjiān  ―  to waste time

2. (countable) time (a quantity of availability in time) (Classifier: 段 m)
3. (countable) time (a measurement of a quantity of time; a numerical indication of a length of time) (Classifier: 段 m)

Synonyms

• 時候／时候 (shíhou)
• (Min Nan) 時陣／时阵 (sî-chūn)
• (Wu) 辰光 (chénguāng)

Descendants

Sino-Xenic (時間):

• → Japanese: 時間(じかん) (jikan)
• → Korean: 시간(時間) (sigan)
• → Vietnamese: thời gian (時間)

(deprecated template usage)

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Japanese

Kanji in this term
時	間
じ Grade: 2	かん Grade: 2
on'yomi

Etymology

Probably originally a compound 時間 (dzyi kɛn, literally “time interval”). Repurposed in the early Meiji period as a translation of the western term time in relation to philosophy in the 1881 publication of 哲学字彙 (Tetsugaku Jii, “Philosophy Dictionary”) compiled by Inoue Tetsujirō.

The reading is a mix of the goon reading ji and the kan'on reading kan, suggesting either that the reading changed after borrowing (from the expected goon pronunciation of jiken or the expected kan'on pronunciation of shikan), or that this term was independently coined in Japanese after the constituent terms 時(じ) (ji) and 間(かん) (kan) were borrowed.

Noun

時(じ)間(かん) • (jikan) 

1. time

   時間(じかん)は何(なん)ですか。

   Jikan wa nan desu ka.

   What is the time?
2. an hour

   何(なん)時間(じかん)もかかりそうです。

   Nan jikan mo kakari sō desu.

   Apparently it will take many hours.

3. the hours or time when something happens.

   財布(さいふ)を持(も)ってきて！買(か)い物(もの)の時間(じかん)ですよ！

   Saifu o motte kite! Kaimono no jikan desu yo!

   Bring your wallet! It's shopping time!

   営業(えいぎょう)時間(じかん)は月火水(げつかすい)、午前９時(ごぜんくじ)から午後２時(ごごにじ)までです。

   Eigyō jikan wa getsu ka sui, gozen ku-ji kara gogo ni-ji made desu.

   Business hours are Monday to Wednesday, 9 AM to 2 PM.

Usage notes

The more general word for time, as in when something happens, is 時 (toki).

• 海(うみ)辺(べ)に行(い)った時(とき)

  umibe ni itta toki

  the time I went to the beach, when I went to the beach

Derived terms

Derived terms

• 時間切(じかんぎ)れ (jikangire): out of time, past the deadline
• 時間帯(じかんたい) (jikantai): time zone; time slot (such as for a TV program)
• 時間(じかん)つぶし (jikan tsubushi): wasting time; killing time

• 営業時間(えいぎょうじかん) (eigyō jikan): business hours
• 所要時間(しょようじかん) (shoyō jikan): required time

Related terms

• 期間(きかん) (kikan): duration, period

See also

• 時空(じくう) (jikū): time and space
• 空間(くうかん) (kūkan): space, a space
• 時空間(じくうかん) (jikūkan): spacetime
• 日数(にっすう) (nissū): number of days (duration)

Descendants

• Chinese: 時間／时间 (shíjiān)
• Korean: 시간 (sigan)
• Vietnamese: thời gian

Counter

時(じ)間(かん) or 時間(counter) • (jikan or counter) [[Category:Japanese
|しかん']]

1. an hour-long period

   一(いち)時間(じかん)、二(に)時間(じかん)、五(ご)時間(じかん)半(はん)

   ichi-jikan, ni-jikan, go-jikan han

   one hour, two hours, five and a half hours

References

• Shōgaku Tosho (1988) 国語大辞典（新装版） [Unabridged Dictionary of Japanese (Revised Edition)] (in Japanese), Tōkyō: Shogakukan, →ISBN

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Korean

Hanja in this term
時	間

Noun

時間 • (sigan) (hangeul 시간)

1. hanja form^? of 시간 (“time, an hour or hours”)

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Vietnamese

chữ Hán Nôm in this term
時	間

Noun

(deprecated template usage) 時間

1. chữ Hán form of thời gian (“time”).