興奮
Meaning in Englishexcitement, stimulation
Animated kanji stroke order
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Word context
What it means
興奮 means a state of heightened excitement or arousal, emotional or physical. It covers feelings of thrill, stimulation, or eager anticipation in response to events or stimuli, and is commonly expressed with the verb 興奮する to describe becoming excited or stimulated.
Main meanings
- Emotional excitement: a lively mental state due to anticipation, joy, or surprise.
- Physiological arousal: heightened bodily responsiveness in situations like competition or performance.
- Sexual arousal: heightened sexual excitement in clinical or casual discourse.
How to use it
Used as a noun to describe a state of excitement or arousal; can take the suru-verb 興奮する to express becoming excited; in formal contexts (psychology, medicine, journalism) it conveys physiological or emotional arousal, while in casual speech it often conveys enthusiastic anticipation.
Variants and close terms
- 高揚 (kōyō) — exaltation
- 刺激 (shigeki) — stimulation
- 熱狂 (nekkyō) — frenzy or fervor
- 冷静さ (reisei-sa) — calmness (antonym)
Composition
- 興: rise, flourish; to excite
- 奮: to strive, exert, stir up
- Combination: the two characters convey rising energy and active excitement, yielding the sense of arousal or heightened emotion
Etymology
kō and fun are the on'yomi readings of 興 and 奮 that converge in this native Sino-Japanese compound; the pronunciation kōfun reflects the combination of these kanji readings rather than a direct borrowing.
Word class
Noun, suru verb (名詞, する動詞)