Corona Virus Japanese-English Vocabulary List

Here are some terms you may find used in the Japanese press regarding the Corona Virus COVID-19 and their English translations. These are unofficial translations.

I got a lot of these translations from the classic WWWJDIC.

For more information on the COVID-19 situation in Japan, see this Reddit r/JapanTravel thread.

Wash your hands.

新型コロナウイルス / shingata corona uirusu / Corona Virus

感染者 / kansensha / an infected person

感染者数 / kansenshasuu / number of infected people

感染する/ kansensuru / to infect (to spread a disease)

2時感染者 / nijikansensha / secondary infection (if infected are put into a hospital and infect someone who was not infected)

接触感染 / sesshoku kansen / infection through contact

飛沫感染 / himatsu kansen / infection from droplets

感染爆発 / kansenbakuhatsu / explosive increase in infections

ソーシャルディスタンス / sousharu disutansu /social distance

一定距離 / ittei kyori / fixed distance (from something, used in context of social distancing

軽傷者 / keishousha / an infected person with light symptoms

疫病 / ekibyou / pandemic

世界的大流行 / sekaiteki dairyuukou / pandemic

防疫 / boueki / communicable disease control (e.g. by quarantine, disinfection, etc.); 

休校 / kyuukou / school cancelation

延期 / enki / postponed

無期延期 / mukienki / postponed without set date to be rescheduled

中止 / chuushi / cancelled

休業 / kyuugyou / business temporarily closed

休業要請 / kyuugyou yousei / request (by the government) to temporarily closes business

休園 / kyuuen / park temporarily closed

休演 / kyuuen / performance or show canceled

時短 / jitan / reduced hours

拡大防止 / kakudai boushi / prevent from spreading further

自宅待機 / jitaku taiki / stay (quarantined) in your home

コロナ感染防止対策 / korona kansen boushi taisaku / measures to prevent the spread of the Corona Virus

臨時休館 / rinjikyuukan / a temporary (irregular) closing

時間短縮 / jikan tanshuku / reduced hours (of operation)

感染情報 / kansen jyouhou / information about the status of the infection

感染症 / kansenshou / infectious disease; infection;

感染力 / kansenryoku / degree of infectiousness (how infectious something is)

家庭感染 / katei kansen / infection at home among one’s family

蔓延 / manen /  infestation; proliferation; being widespread 

致死率 / chishiritsu / fatality rate

死亡率 / shibouritsu / death rate

陰性 / insei / negative

陽性 / yousei / positive

再陽性 / saiyousei / reinfection (recovered but tested positive again)

緊急事態宣言/ kinkyuu jitai senngenn / declare a state of emergency

緊急対策 / kinkyutaisaku / emergency measures

デマ情報 / dema jyouhou / fake news

消毒 / shoudoku / disinfectant

 除菌 / jyokin / disinfection; sterilize;

アルコール消毒 / arukouru shoudoku / alcohol disinfectant

在庫 / zaiko / inventory

品切れ / hingire / out of stock, stock shortage

転売 / tenbai / reselling (e.g., 転売禁止 in regards to masks)

感染確認 / kansen kakunin / confirmed infections

厚生労働省 / kouseiroudoushou / Ministry of Health Labor and Welfare

高熱 / kounetsu / high fever

発熱 / hatsunetsu / to have (get) a fever

頭痛 / zutsuu / headache

検温 / kenon / temperature measurement

肺炎 / haien / pneumonia

検査 / kensa / inspection; examination;

入国規制 / nyuukoku kisei / immigration restriction

入国拒否 / nyuukokukyohi / denying entry to a country (immigration denial)

渡航制限 / tokou seigen / restrictions and limitations on flights

無観客 / mukankyaku / an event with no audience (many live events are being changed to live events with no live audience, i.e., televised only)

外出制限 / gaishutsu seigen / restrictions on going outside of your home (lockdown)

外出禁止 / gaishutsu kinshi / prohibited to go outdoors

自宅待機要請 / jitaku taiki yousei / a request to stay-at-home

不要不急 / fuyoufukyuu / unnecessary and not urgent (不要不急な渡航 travel that is neither necessary nor urgent)

指数関数的に増加する / shisuukannsuuteki ni zoukasuru / grow exponentially

密閉 密集 密接 / mippei misshuu missetsu / places with bad circulation, crowded places, close contact with others

行動変容 / koudou henyou / behavior change (change daily patterns to prevent spread)

最多を更新 / saita wo koushin / more than the previous maximum (used when reporting daily infection numbers)

医療崩壊 / iryou houkai / collapse of the healthcare system

封鎖解除 / fuusa kaijyo / “release of lockdown” city lockdown removed

警戒感 / keikaikan / feeling of urgency

個人防御服 / kojinbougyofuku / personal protective equipment

病床数 / byoushousuu / number of hospital beds

第二波 / dainiha / second wave

ガス抜き / gasu nuki / “out of gas” referring to people who are tired of doing self-restraint and start going out again.

出口戦略 / deguchi senryaku / exit strategy

新たな生活様式 / aratana seikatsu youshiki / new lifestyle

コロナ太り / korona butori / weight gained because you stayed indoors so long doing nothing during the corona pandemic