The Meaning of kaimono [買い物] In Japanese

買い物
かいもの
Romaji: kaimono N5

What does 買い物 mean?

Translation and Meaning

buying things, shopping

Definition

買い物 (kaimono) means shopping; it denotes the activity of purchasing goods or running errands to obtain items, covering everyday needs like groceries as well as larger planned purchases, and is widely used in spoken and written Japanese to refer to the event or process of buying.

Type

noun (名詞); verbal noun / suru-verb (サ変名詞)

Stroke Order

Meanings

  • 1. The items acquired through shopping—the purchases themselves, distinct from the act.
  • 2. A shopping trip or errand: a specific outing undertaken to buy supplies or goods.
  • 3. Recreational shopping: buying as leisure or pastime rather than necessity.
  • 4. A commerce or UI label indicating shopping functions or purchased items in stores and e-commerce contexts.

Origin

Buying and market exchange have existed in Japan since ancient times, with formalized urban marketplaces expanding in the Edo period; the modern consumer notion of shopping grew significantly during the Meiji and Taisho eras with department stores and later 20th-century retail developments, which shaped the contemporary social practice captured by the term.

Composition

  • 買 (kai): buy, to purchase.
  • 物 (mono): thing, object, goods.
  • The compound 買い物 (kaimono) combines those elements to convey ‘buy-thing,’ i.e., the act of acquiring things or the goods obtained by buying.

Usage

Used across everyday speech, signage, receipts, and commerce contexts to refer to going to stores, doing errands, or the general act of buying; appropriate in casual conversation and neutral written contexts—from saying you need groceries to referencing online purchases or store categories.
💡 Tips
Picture handing over money and taking a single ‘mono’ (thing): the moment of exchange helps link kai (buy) + mono (thing) into 買い物 (kaimono).

Variations

  • ショッピング (shoppingu): loanword from English meaning shopping (casual/modern).
  • 買い出し (kaidashi): a shopping trip or errand, often for provisions.
  • 購入 (kounyuu): purchase (more formal, emphasizes the transaction).

Example Phrases

  • 私は買い物袋のラベルを剥がすついでに、箱の貼り紙も剥がした。
    Watashi wa kaimonobukuro no raberu o hagasu tsuide ni, hako no harigami mo hagashita.
    I peeled off the label from the shopping bag, and I also peeled off the box’s sticker.
    Lista:
    • 私は (Watashi wa) – I
    • 買い物袋のラベルを (kaimonobukuro no raberu o) – the label on the shopping bag
    • 剥がすついでに (hagasu tsuide ni) – while peeling off
    • 箱の貼り紙も (hako no harigami mo) – the box’s sticker too
    • 剥がした (hagashita) – peeled off
    The target verb 「剥がす」 is transitive and takes a direct object marked by を; in this sentence, it is used as 「剥がす」 with ラベルを. The phrase 「剥がすついでに」 meaning ‘while peeling off (one thing)’ shows doing another action as a byproduct.
  • 新しい契約が成立すると、安心して買い物ができる。
    Atarashii keiyaku ga seiritsu suru to, anshin shite kaimono ga dekiru.
    When a new contract is established, you can shop with peace of mind.
    Lista:
    • 新しい (atarashii) – new
    • 契約 (keiyaku) – contract
    • が (ga) – (subject marker)
    • 成立 (seiritsu) – establishment / being formed
    • すると (suru to) – then / when
    • 安心して (anshin shite) – with peace of mind
    • 買い物 (kaimono) – shopping
    • が (ga) – (subject marker)
    • できる (dekiru) – can do / be able to
    The word 「成立」 marks the moment something becomes binding; here it means the contract has been formed.
  • 私は 矢鱈に 買い物を しすぎて 財布が すぐに なくなった。
    Watashi wa yatarani kaimono o shisugite saifu ga sugu ni nakunatta.
    I shopped recklessly and ran out of money immediately.
    Lista:
    • 私は (watashi wa) – I
    • 矢鱈に (yatarani) – recklessly
    • 買い物を (kaimono o) – shopping
    • しすぎて (shisugite) – did too much
    • 財布が (saifu ga) – wallet
    • すぐに (sugu ni) – immediately
    • なくなった (nakunatta) – was gone
    The adverb 「矢鱈に」 means ‘recklessly; indiscriminately’, used to modify the following verb.
  • 母と 並びに 私も 買い物へ 出かけました。
    Haha to narabi ni watashi mo kaimono e dekakemashita.
    My mother and I also went shopping.
    Lista:
    • 母と (Haha to) – mother and
    • 並びに (narabi ni) – and
    • 私も (watashi mo) – I also
    • 買い物へ (kaimono e) – to shopping
    • 出かけました (dekakemashita) – went
    「並びに」 is a formal connector meaning ‘and; as well as’, here linking 母と and 私も to show both did the action.
  • 私の奥さんは今、買い物に行っています。
    Watashi no okusan wa ima, kaimono ni itte imasu.
    My wife is going shopping now.
    Lista:
    • 私の (watashi no) – my
    • 奥さん (okusan) – wife
    • は (wa) – topic marker
    • 今 (ima) – now
    • 買い物 (kaimono) – shopping
    • に (ni) – to
    • 行っています (itte imasu) – is going
    Uses 「奥さん」 as ‘wife’; here it is possessed by 「私の」 → ‘my wife’. 「は」 marks the topic; 「行っています」 expresses ongoing action.
買い物