Word Detail

The Japanese word 怪我, pronounced けが (kega), means "injury," "wound," or "harm." It refers to physical damage to the body. It can range from minor cuts and bruises to more severe injuries like broken bones or internal damage. The word describes the state of having been hurt or damaged.

⚫︎ 転んで怪我をしました。 Translation: I fell and got injured. ⚫︎ サッカーの試合中に怪我をして、病院に行きました。 Translation: I got injured during the soccer game and went to the hospital. ⚫︎ 怪我をしたので、しばらく学校を休みます。 Translation: Because I got injured, I will take a break from school for a while.

⚫︎ 怪我 is used to describe physical injuries in various situations. ⚫︎ It's a common word used in everyday conversation. ⚫︎ You can use it when talking about your own injuries, someone else's injuries, or injuries that have occurred in a specific context (like a sport or accident). ⚫︎ It is often used in the past tense or potential form to indicate the occurrence or possibility of an injury.

⚫︎ The word is typically written with the kanji 怪 (kai, meaning "suspicious" or "strange") and 我 (ga, meaning "self" or "I"). ⚫︎ However, when written in hiragana, it's けが. ⚫︎ There are no variations in the okurigana for this word.

⚫︎ 傷 (kizu): wound, scar, scratch. ⚫︎ 外傷 (gaishou): external injury, trauma. ⚫︎ 負傷 (fushou): injury (formal).

⚫︎ 健康 (kenkou): health. ⚫︎ 無事 (buji): safety, unharmed.

彼は交通事故で怪我をしました。 ・Translation: He was injured in a traffic accident. ・Explanation: This sentence uses 怪我 to describe the injury sustained in a traffic accident.

走っている時に転んで、膝に怪我をしてしまいました。 ・Translation: I fell while running and injured my knee. ・Explanation: This sentence explains how the injury occurred and where the injury is.

⚫︎ The kanji 怪 originally meant "suspicious" or "strange", and 我 originally meant "I" or "self". ⚫︎ Although the etymology is not completely clear, the combination of the kanji suggests something "strange" or "affecting" the "self", thus describing something negative that happens to one’s body or to oneself.