Word
Kana: ダイヤル Romaji: daiyaru Level: N2

ダイヤル

Meaning in English

dial

Illustrated Dictionary
ダイヤル - Illustrated Dictionary
Sentence

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Dictionary

Word context

What it means

ダイヤル refers to a rotating control used to select numbers or settings on devices like phones, watches, radios, or gauges, and to the dial itself rather than the overall device.

Main meanings

  • Physical dial on devices such as telephones, watches, radios, gauges, or safes
  • The action of turning or rotating a dial to enter or select a value
  • A dial indicator or gauge on instrumentation used to display measurements

How to use it

Used in technical writing and daily speech to describe devices with rotating controls; common constructions involve turning or setting values on a dial; casual usage often refers to the dial itself rather than the whole device.

Variants and close terms

  • つまみ tsumami — knob or handle for turning a dial
  • 文字盤 mojiban — dial face such as on a watch or clock
  • ロータリーダイヤル rotarii daiyaru — rotary dial

Etymology

From English dial; loanword rendered in Japanese as ダイヤル, with phonetic adaptation to fit Japanese mora timing.

Origin

Introduced during Japan's modernization with telecommunication devices; the term appeared in Meiji–Taisho periods and later expanded to other dial-based controls in consumer electronics.

Word class

Noun (loanword)