To my readers from the US and Canada, I hope you’ve had a great Thanksgiving! Here are some Thanksgiving related vocabulary to mark the occasion!

感謝祭 (かんしゃさい, kanshasai) – Thanksgiving

This phrase is literally as you see it in English. 感謝かんしゃ means thanks (it’s used as a noun), whereas 祭 (pronounced as まつり own it’s own, and more often as さい in compound phrases) means festival.

南瓜 (かぼちゃ, kabocha) – pumpkin

収穫 (しゅうかく. shuukaku) – harvest; crop

豊穣の角 (ほうじょうのつの, houjayou no tsuno) – cornucopia; horn of plenty​

As often the case when comparing Japanese and English, the word order is switched. Here, the word ‘horn’ is placed behind, and the ‘plenty’ is in front.

豊穣 (ほうじょう, houjyou) – abundant (grain) crop; good harvest​

角 (つの, tsuno) – horn; antler​

角 is a common but complicated word! It is more commonly pronounced as かく, (usually) meaning angle, or かど, meaning corner/edge. Multiple pronunciations with different meanings for each pronunciation!

コルヌコピア (korunukopia) – cornucopia

宴会 (えんかい, enkai) – party; banquet; reception; feast; dinner​

七面鳥 (しちめんちょう, shichimenchou) – turkey

That’s right! The Japanese name for turkey literally means ‘seven faced bird’. The name reflects the ability of adult male turkeys to change it’s facial skin color in a matter of seconds depending on it’s mood! Amazing isn’t it?

秋 (あき, aki) – fall; autumn

紅葉 (こうよう, kouyou) – autumn colours; fall colors; leaves changing color (colour)​

肉汁 (にくじゅう, nikujyuu) – meat soup; bouillon; juices (from grilled meat); gravy

クランベリー (kuranberii) – cranberry

パンプキンパイ (panpukinpai) – pumpkin pie