Word.ws English Dictionary

japan

/d͡ʒəˈpæn/UK/d͡ʒəˈpæn/

japan noun: a hard black enamel varnish containing asphalt.

japan: a hard black enamel varnish containing asphalt
Image: Nbarth, CC0, via Wikimedia Commons

Noun

japan (countable and uncountable, plural japans)

  1. A hard black enamel varnish containing asphalt.
    • My own apartment, however, I was allowed to enter; and very pretty, I must say, it is. It is hung with Indian-silk, where the brightest of birds, and the gayest of flowers, disport themselves on a white ground. The screens and dressing-table are of black japan, while the mirror is set in exquisite...1837, L[etitia] E[lizabeth] L[andon], “Much Change in a Little Time”, in Ethel Churchill: Or, The Two Brides. […], volume I, London: Henry Colburn, […], →OCLC, page 64
  2. Lacquerware.

Verb

japan (third-person singular simple present japans, present participle japanning, simple past and past participle japanned)

  1. (transitive) To varnish (something) with japan.
    • He fastens his plates by fine srews in any waving or curving lines, and then japans them in all the most varied and beautiful shades.1847, editorial staff, “Veneering Metal Plates”, in Scientific American, series 1, Volume 3, Issue 9, page 68
    • Piled against the wall were certain boxes of black japanned tin, which had just been sent to him from London. At any other time he would certainly not have left them unopened. For they contained his robes of the Garter.1911 October 26, Max Beerbohm, Zuleika Dobson, or, An Oxford Love Story, 1st American edition, New York, N.Y.: John Lane Company, published 1912, →OCLC
  2. (UK, obsolete, slang, transitive) To ordain (someone).
    • Jack, hearing that I was in this part of the world, sent me a very hearty letter, informing me, that he had been double-japanned (as he called it) about a year ago, and was the present incumbent of — […]1826, George Colman, The Connoisseur, page 179

Proper noun capitalized: Japan

Japan

  1. A country in East Asia. Capital and largest city: Tokyo.
    • Vivian: If you set a picture by Hokusai, or Hokkei, or any of the great native painters, beside a real Japanese gentleman or lady, you will see that there is not the slightest resemblance between them. The actual people who live in Japan are not unlike the general run of English people; that is to...1889 Jan., Oscar Wilde, The Decay of Lying: An Observation", The Nineteenth Century
    • Japan’s very interesting. Some people think it copies things. I don’t think that anymore. I think what they do is reinvent things. They will get something that’s already been invented and study it until they thoroughly understand it. In some cases, they understand it better than the original...1985 February, Steve Jobs, interview with David Sheff, Playboy
  2. An archipelago of East Asia; in full, Japanese archipelago.

japan meaning in Hindi, Tamil, Marathi and Urdu

japan in Hindi

जापान, जापाना

japan in Tamil

இது ஒரு நாடாகும்

japan in Marathi

जपान, जापान, जपानची

japan in Urdu

جاپان
More languagesFewer languages
japan in Bengali
বার্ণিশ, রং করা কাজ, বার্ণিশ করা
japan in Telugu
జపాన్
japan in Malayalam
ജപ്പാൻ എന്ന രാജ്യം
japan in Kannada
ಜಪಾನ್
japan in Punjabi
ਜਪਾਨ, ਜਾਪਾਨ, ਜਪਾਨ ਤੱਕ
japan in Gujarati
જાપાન, જાપાને
japan in Odia
ଜାପାନ, ଜାପାନକୁ
japan in Nepali
जापान

Examples of japan in a sentence

  • The screens and dressing-table are of black japan, while the mirror is set in exquisite silver filigree work, of which material are also the boxes of my toilette.1837, L[etitia] E[lizabeth] L[andon], “Much Change in a Little Time”, in Ethel Churchill: Or, The Two Brides. […], volume I, London: Henry...
  • Among other monstrosities in this lumber room was a largeish black japanned box, excellently and ingeniously made some sixty or seventy years ago, and fitted with every imaginable object.1928, D[avid] H[erbert] Lawrence, chapter XI, in Lady Chatterley’s Lover, [Germany?]: Privately printed, →OCLC, page 241:
  • The revolving drum, 12 inches in diameter, was black japanned, on a turned wooden base, and there were many coloured strips.1971, Gwen White, Antique Toys And Their Background, page 183:

All 23 example sentences with japan

Synonyms of japan

1 more synonymsFewer synonyms

Forms of japan

Noun
pluraljapans
Verb
third-person singular presentjapans
present participlejapanning
past participlejapanned
pastjapanned
Proper noun
alternative form (obsolete)Giapan
alternative form (obsolete)Japonia
alternative form (obsolete)Japony
alternative form (obsolete)Japon

Plural of japan: japans

Origin of japan

From Japan, due to this varnishing process being an imitation of East Asian processes. Sense “to ordain” in reference to the black clothes worn by the clergy.

First attested in English as Giapan in Richard Willes's 1577 The History of Travayle in the West and East Indies (cited in Peter C. Mancall's Travel Narratives from the Age of Discovery, pp. 156–57), translating a 19 February 1565 letter of the Portuguese Jesuit missionary Luís Fróis as "Of the Ilande of Giapan". Borrowed from Portuguese Japam /Japão with possible influence from Dutch Japan, both from Malay Jepang, from Hokkien 日本 (Ji̍t-pún), from Middle Chinese 日本 (nyit pwon^X, “sun origin”). With /j/ readings, such as Iaponia /Japonia /Japon /Iapon from possibly Cantonese 日本 (jat⁶ bun²), also from Middle Chinese 日本 (nyit pwon^X, “sun origin”). Compare also modern Mandarin 日本 (Rìběn), Japanese 日本(にっぽん) (Nippon) / 日本(にほん) (Nihon) (whence English doublets Nippon and Nihon), Korean 일본 (Ilbon) (日本), Vietnamese Nhật Bản (日本). The earliest form of Japan in Europe was Marco Polo's Cipangu, from some form of synonymous Sinitic 日本國 /日本国 (“Japan state”).

Words formed from japan

Phrases with japan

5 more phrasesFewer phrases

Words that rhyme with japan

48 more rhymesFewer rhymes

Questions about japan

What does japan mean?
Japan means a hard black enamel varnish containing asphalt.
What is japan in Hindi?
Japan in Hindi is जापान, जापाना. See Japan meaning in Hindi.
How do you use japan in a sentence?
The screens and dressing-table are of black japan, while the mirror is set in exquisite silver filigree work, of which material are also the boxes of my toilette.
What part of speech is japan?
Japan can be a noun, a verb or a proper noun.
How do you pronounce japan?
Japan is pronounced /d͡ʒəˈpæn/.
What is the plural of japan?
The plural of japan is japans.

Words near japan in the dictionary

  1. japalang
  2. japalura
  3. japaluras
  4. japamala
  5. japamalas
  6. japan
  7. Japan cat
  8. Japan cats
  9. Japan cedar
  10. Japan cedars
  11. Japan clover

Source and license

Adapted from Wiktionary: japan (page history and authors); Japan (page history and authors); japan (Hindi, IndicTrans2 machine translation) (model and license); Japan (Tamil Wiktionary) (page history and authors); japan (Marathi, IndicTrans2 machine translation) (model and license); japan (Urdu, IndicTrans2 machine translation) (model and license); japan (Bengali Wiktionary) (page history and authors); japan (Telugu, IndicTrans2 machine translation) (model and license); japan (Malayalam Wiktionary) (page history and authors); Japan (Kannada Wiktionary) (page history and authors); japan (Punjabi, IndicTrans2 machine translation) (model and license); japan (Gujarati, IndicTrans2 machine translation) (model and license); japan (Odia, IndicTrans2 machine translation) (model and license); japan (Nepali, IndicTrans2 machine translation) (model and license). Text available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 license. Word.ws reformatted the entry and added links. Wiktionary data of 2026-09-02.

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Pronunciation audio from Wikimedia Commons, each file under its own free license: en-us-japan.ogg.

Cite this entry: “japan.” Word.ws, https://word.ws/japan. Based on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.