コンピューター
コンピューター
konpyuuta
= computer
Konpyuuta (コンピューター) is the Japanese loanword for computer — one of the most important technology words in modern Japanese vocabulary. It sits alongside a rich ecosystem of English-origin tech terms that now fill Japanese digital life.
Konpyuuta (コンピューター) refers to a computer in all its forms. In practice, Japanese speakers often use more specific terms: pasokon (パソコン, from ‘personal computer’ — a personal computer or laptop) is far more common in everyday speech than the full konpyuuta for personal devices. Konpyuuta is used more for institutional or industrial computers, or in formal/technical contexts. Related compound words: konpyuuta geimu (コンピューターゲーム, computer game), konpyuuta saiensu (コンピューターサイエンス, computer science), konpyuutaウイルス (コンピューターウイルス, computer virus). For everyday computing actions, Japanese uses a mix of English loanwords: kuroodo suru (クロードする, to upload… actually that’s wrong), daunroodo suru (ダウンロードする, to download), kopi-peesuto suru (コピーペーストする, to copy-paste), roguzu suru (ログインする, to log in).
The key practical point: Japanese people almost never use konpyuuta for their home or work computer — they say pasokon (パソコン). If someone shows you their laptop and you want to compliment it, say ii pasokon desu ne (いいパソコンですね), not ii konpyuuta desu ne. Konpyuuta is reserved for more formal contexts, technical discussion, and referring to non-personal computing systems. The abbreviation PC (ピーシー) is also used alongside pasokon.
Everyday use
コンピューターサイエンスを学ぶために大学に進学した。
Konpyuuta saiensu wo manabu tame ni daigaku ni shingaku shita.
I went to university to study computer science.
Casual / Social Media
コンピューターウイルスにやられてパソコンが起動しなくなった…最悪
Konpyuuta uirusu ni yararete pasokon ga kidou shinaku natta… saiaku
Got hit by a computer virus and my PC won’t start now… worst day ever
Formal / Cultural context
量子コンピューターの実用化により、暗号技術が大きく変わると予測される。
Ryoushi konpyuuta no jitsuyouka ni yori, angou gijutsu ga oukiku kawaru to yosoku sareru.
The practical implementation of quantum computers is predicted to dramatically transform encryption technology.
Japan has a complex relationship with computers and digital technology. On one hand, Japan is a global leader in robotics, semiconductors, and certain technology sectors. On the other hand, the country’s adoption of personal computing in offices has been notably uneven — fax machines (fakusu, ファクス) remained standard business communication tools well into the 2010s, and hanko (印鑑, personal stamp seals) for document authentication resisted digitization until COVID-era reform pushed their elimination in 2021. This paradox — a technologically sophisticated nation with conservative adoption of certain digital practices — is frequently discussed in Japanese business media.
The word pasokon (パソコン, personal computer) became so embedded in Japanese from the 1980s and 1990s PC boom that it effectively displaced konpyuuta for everyday use. The PC-88 and PC-98 computer lines by NEC defined Japanese computing from the late 1970s through the 1990s and ran a Japanese software ecosystem — particularly games and productivity software — that diverged significantly from Western standards. This early Japanese PC culture, centered on pasokon, shapes how Japanese speakers still think about personal computing today: as something fundamentally distinct from institutional computing (konpyuuta).