演技（えんぎ、engi）
- acting

The Japanese word 演技, read as えんぎ (eng-gi), primarily refers to "acting," "performance," or "playing a role." It encompasses the art of portraying a character in a play, film, television show, or any other form of performance. It also extends to a broader sense of displaying behavior that may not be genuine. The word 演技 implies skill, technique, and the ability to convincingly embody a character or persona. It's about using your body, voice, and emotions to bring a character to life or to create an impression.

⚫︎ 映画での彼の《演技は素晴らしかった。》 Translation: His acting in the movie was wonderful. ⚫︎ あの政治家は《演技がうまい。》 Translation: That politician is good at putting on an act. ⚫︎ 彼女の《演技は自然で、観客を魅了した。》 Translation: Her performance was natural and captivated the audience.

⚫︎ Use 演技 when discussing the quality of acting in a play, movie, or TV show. ⚫︎ Use 演技 to describe someone's behavior if you suspect they are not being genuine. ⚫︎ It's common to use 演技 with adjectives like 素晴らしい (subarashii - wonderful), 下手な (hetana - poor), or 上手な (jouzuna - skillful) to describe the quality of the 演技. ⚫︎ The word can be used as a noun.

⚫︎ The word 演技 is typically written in kanji as 演技. ⚫︎ The reading is えんぎ (eng-gi). ⚫︎ There are no common variations in okurigana.

⚫︎ パフォーマンス (pafoomansu) - performance ⚫︎ 芝居 (shibai) - play (theatre) ⚫︎ 演劇 (engeki) - drama/theatre ⚫︎ 表現 (hyougen) - expression/representation

⚫︎ 素 (su) - naturalness; genuineness ⚫︎ 本物 (honmono) - real thing; genuine ⚫︎ There isn't a direct single word antonym, but concepts like "being natural" or "being genuine" can be considered opposites.

その俳優の《演技は感情豊かで、観客を引き込んだ。》 ・Translation: That actor's performance was rich in emotion and drew in the audience. ・Explanation: This sentence describes the positive impact of the actor's 演技 on the audience, emphasizing its emotional depth and ability to captivate.

彼はいつも《演技をしているように見える。》 ・Translation: He always seems to be putting on an act. ・Explanation: This sentence suggests a suspicion that someone's behavior is not genuine and is possibly insincere, likening it to 演技.

The word 演技 is a compound word formed from two kanji: 演 (en) which means "to perform" or "to act," and 技 (gi) which means "skill," "technique," or "art." Therefore, 演技 literally translates to "performance skill" or "acting art."