10 Ways to Say “Star” in Japanese (Best Words & Kanji)

In this blog post, I am going to tell you a variety of words that are used to say “star” or “stars” in Japanese. Since there are a couple of words I will explain to you in detail each word’s meaning, translation, and how to write them in kanji. Let’s get started with the most common words for “star” in Japanese.

The most commonly used word to say “star” in Japanese is hoshi (星). However, when referring to a star or the stars in a more scientific way the word kousei (恒星) is usually used. The English loanword sutaa (スター) can also be found as a translation of star, especially in names for places and anime.

Below you can find more details about the words mentioned above and get to know their other translations, too. After that, we will look at more advanced and related words for “star” in Japanese including “shooting star“, “black star“, “morning star“, “shining star“, “Lucky Star“, and so on.

How to Say “Star” in Japanese

• hoshi – 星
• sutaa – スター
• kousei – 恒星
• hoshi sama – 星様

1. Hoshi – Most Common Word for “Star(s)” in Japanese

The most common word for “star” or “stars” in Japanese is hoshi (星). Japanese people use this word whenever they want to refer to a celestial body that shines at night, but sometimes it can also mean “planet“. The Sun and the Earth have separate names, though, and are not referred to as “hoshi“.

hoshi
星
star (excluding the sun)
planet (excluding the Earth)

If you want to know the Japanese word for “sun” check out my linked blog article. In the post, you can learn 9 different ways how to say sun in Japanese.

2. Sutaa – English Loanword Meaning “Star” or “Idol”

Sutaa (スター) is an English loanword that means “star” or “idol“. It is more commonly used when talking about celebrities than celestial stars, but it can also be translated as “star symbol” or “asterisk“.

Since Japanese people often consider the sound of English words as cooler than the original Japanese ones, you will often find this loanword used for game titles as well as places for names, anime, and manga.

sutaa
スター
star
celebrity, idol
star (symbol), asterisk

3. Kousei – Astronomical Term for “Star”

The scientific or astronomical term for the word “star” is kousei (恒星). It is best translated as “fixed star” or into Latin as “asteres aplanis” (source). You will probably only encounter this word when you read some scientific papers about stars in Japanese.

kousei
恒星
star (astronomy)

4. Hoshi Sama – Honorific Way to Say “Star” in Japanese

Children might use the word hoshi sama (星様) or o-hoshi sama (お星様) to say “star” in Japanese. Both the prefix “o” and the suffix “sama” are honorifics that show respect and make you sound more polite. This word is mostly used in kindergartens and sometimes songs.

hoshi sama
星様
star (honorific)

o-hoshi sama
お星様
star (even more honorific)

Advanced Words That Mean “Star” in Japanese

• nagareboshi – 流れ星
• burakku sutaa – ブラックスター
• buruu sutaa – ブルースター
• gyousei – 暁星
• hikatteiru hoshi – 光っている星
• akarui hoshi – 明るい星
• shuriken – 手裏剣
• raki suta – らき☆すた
• kira kira boshi – きらきら星

5. Nagareboshi – “Shooting Star” or “Falling Star”

Nagareboshi (流れ星) means “shooting star“, “falling star“, or “meteor“. The first part of the word “nagare” (流れ) can be translated as “flow“, “drifting“, or “wandering“, and the second part is the common word and kanji for “star” but read as “boshi” instead of “hoshi”.

nagareboshi
流れ星
shooting star
falling star
meteor

There are a couple of other words that can be used to say “shooting star” in Japanese such as ryuusei (流星), shuutingu sutaa (シューティングスター), and the astronomical term yobaiboshi (夜這星).

ryuusei
流星
meteor, shooting star, falling star

shuutingu sutaa
シューティングスター
shooting star

yobaiboshi
夜這星
meteor, shooting star (astronomy)

6. Burakku Sutaa – “Black Star”

Burakku sutaa (ブラックスター) and kuroi hoshi (黒い星) both translate as “black star“. The former is more commonly used in titles and names (e.g. character from the anime Soul Eater), while the latter can be used when you want to talk about a black-colored star.

burakku sutaa
ブラックスター
black star

kuroi hoshi
黒い星
black star

7. Buruu Sutaa – “Blue Star”

Buruu Sutaa (ブルースター) and aoi hoshi (青い星) can be used to say “blue star” in Japanese. The first word consists of the loanwords for “blue” and “star“, while “aoi hoshi” consists of the original Japanese words for “blue” and “star“.

When you want to refer to a blue-colored star, I would recommend you to use “aoi hoshi“, but for a nickname or title “buruu sutaa” would probably be considered the cooler and more suitable option.

buruu sutaa
ブルースター
blue star

aoi hoshi
青い星
blue star

8. Gyousei – “Morning Star”

Gyousei (暁星) is the Japanese word for “morning star“, but can also be translated as “Venus“. The first kanji 暁 means “dawn” or “daybreak“, while 星 means “star“. Another word that is commonly used is myoujou (明星). Its first kanji 明 means “bright” or “light“.

gyousei
暁星
morning star
Venus

myoujou
明星
morning star
Venus

9. Hikatteiru Hoshi – “Shining Star”

If you want to say “shining star” in Japanese you can use hikatteiru hoshi (光っている星). The word hikaru (光る) means “to shine“, “to glitter“, or “to be bright“. Another possibility is the word kagayaku (輝く) which means “to shine“, “to glitter“, or “to sparkle“.

hikatteiru hoshi
光っている星
shining star

kagayaiteiru hoshi
輝いている星
shining star

10. Akarui Hoshi – “Bright Star”

Akarui hoshi (明るい星) is the Japanese phrase you can use to say “bright star“. The word akarui (明るい) translates as “bright” or “brightly-colored“. If you want to say “The stars are bright” in Japanese, you can say “Hoshi wa akarui” (星は明るい).

akarui hoshi
明るい星
bright star

Hoshi wa akarui.
星は明るい。
The stars are bright.

Shuriken – “Ninja Star” or “Throwing Star”

Shuriken (手裏剣) is the Japanese word for “ninja star” or “throwing star“. However, the original Japanese word has actually nothing to do with stars. Instead, it consists of the kanji for “hand” (手), the kanji for “behind“, “in the shadows“, or “in secret” (裏), and the kanji for “sword” or “blade” (剣).

shuriken
手裏剣
ninja star
throwing star
(small throwing blade)

Raki Suta – “Lucky Star”

The name of the Japanese manga and anime “Lucky Star” is Raki Suta (らきすた). Usually, the title is written with a star symbol in between the Japanese words for “lucky” and “star” (らき☆すた).

The correct spelling for the word star in Japanese would actually be sutaa (スター in katakana and すたー in hiragana). Not sure why they decided to use “suta” (すた) instead. The same goes for “lucky” by the way. The correct spelling would be rakkii (ラッキー in katakana and らっきー in hiragana).

Raki Suta
らきすた
Lucky Star

Kira Kira Boshi – “Twinkle Twinkle Little Star”

Kira kira boshi (きらきら星) is the Japanese title for the English lullaby “Twinkle Twinkle Little Star“. The first part “kira kira” (きらきら) means “sparkling“, “glittering“, or “twinkling“, and hoshi (星) is the Japanese word for “star“.

kira kira hoshi
きらきら星
twinkle twinkle little star

Here is the song if you want to listen to it in Japanese: