今（いま、ima）
- now

The Japanese word 今 (いま) primarily means "now" or "at present". It refers to the current time, the present moment, or the contemporary period. It can also indicate "soon" or "very soon" depending on the context.

⚫︎ 今、何時ですか。 Translation: What time is it now? ⚫︎ 今週は忙しいです。 Translation: I am busy this week. ⚫︎ 今から行きます。 Translation: I will go now.

⚫︎ 今 (いま) is used to specify the present time, often contrasting it with the past or future. ⚫︎ It’s commonly used in everyday conversations to refer to the current situation or action. ⚫︎ It can be modified with other time-related words or phrases to provide more specific temporal information (e.g., 今晩 (こんばん) - this evening, 今朝 (けさ) - this morning).

⚫︎ The standard way to write 今 (いま) is with the kanji 今. ⚫︎ The reading in hiragana is いま. ⚫︎ There are no other common ways to write this word. ⚫︎ The okurigana (suffix hiragana) is not used.

⚫︎ 現在 (げんざい) - present (formal) ⚫︎ ただいま (ただいま) - now, right now (polite) ⚫︎ 目下 (もっか) - currently, at present (formal)

⚫︎ 過去 (かこ) - the past ⚫︎ 未来 (みらい) - the future ⚫︎ 昔 (むかし) - a long time ago

今、宿題を終わらせなければなりません。 ・Translation: I have to finish my homework now. ・Explanation: This sentence emphasizes the necessity of completing the homework at the present moment.

彼女は今、忙しいようです。 ・Translation: She seems busy now. ・Explanation: This sentence indicates that the subject's busyness is occurring at the current time.

The kanji 今 is of Chinese origin. It represents the present time or the current moment. The character is composed of the radical 人 (person) and the sound component 今 (now). The exact etymological roots are somewhat debated, but the general understanding relates to the present state of something.