Many of you are probably planning on coming to Japan for your vacation. Do you know how to tell people that you’re on a vacation in Japanese?
It’s “Yasumi” (休み)!
“Yasumi” (休み) is the word used in Japanese to say “rest” or “vacation”.
The Chinese character 休 is composed of a human and a tree, so we can imagine that’s someone resting under a tree.
“Yasumi” (休み) can be used alone but also in many other expressions.
For vacations or holiday periods:
Haru-yasumi（春休み）：Spring vacation
Natsu-yasumi (夏休み)：Summer vacation
O-bon yasumi (お盆休み)：Vacation for ancestors day on August 15th. Many Japanese take few days of holidays around that period
O-shogatsu yasumi (お正月休み)：New Year holidays
We would also use it in everyday life as well, such as:
Oyasumi (おやすみ/お休み): “Good night” or “Good rest”
If you are coming to Japan during your next “yasumi”, you should also know that the term could also mean “closed” or “break” when speaking of a business. So if someone tells you that a restaurant is “yasumi”, you would want to find another place to go to.
So book your flight to Japan for your next “yasumi”!!
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トイレ(Toire) Fun! Japan Words vol.61
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