► 名詞
相手 [あいて] meaning: person rank: 1
☆ 母は私の相談相手だ ⇨ My mom is the one I talk to when I have issues
☆ 彼は私の練習相手だ ⇨ He is my practice partner (☛ Someone who does something with you one on one)
方 [(2)かた] [polite] meaning: person rank: 1
☆ あの方が彼の奥様ですか？ ⇨ Is that person, lady, his wife? (☛ A polite way to address someone you don’t know)
☆ そちらの方はどう思われますか？ ⇨ Person over there, you Sir, you Ma’am, what do you think? (☛ A polite way to address someone you don’t know)
子 [こ] [coll] [peer] meaning: person rank: 1
☆ あの子どうしたの？ ⇨ What’s wrong with her? (☛ Typically used among young women)
人間 [にんげん] meaning: person rank: 1
☆ 彼は真面目な人間だ ⇨ He is an honest human being
人 [(2)ひと] meaning: person rank: 1
☆ 人の命が掛かっている ⇨ Human lives are at stake
☆ 彼女は良い人だ ⇨ She is a nice person
人 [(2)ひと] [人が良い] meaning: person rank: 1
☆ 彼は人が良過ぎて損をしている ⇨ He is too nice of a person and losing out
奴 [(1)やつ] [coll] [contempt] meaning: person rank: 1
☆ 嫌な奴！ ⇨ Bastard! (☛ Can refer to either a man or a woman, but mostly a man, unless used collectively)
人物 [(1)じんぶつ] [liter] meaning: person rank: 2
☆ 彼の人物評 ⇨ His personal reputations
☆ 彼は危険人物だ ⇨ He is a dangerous person
☆ 私達は彼の人物を高く評価した ⇨ We rated him highly as a person
☆ 彼は一体どういう人物なんだ？ ⇨ What kind of person is he? What are his personal backgrounds, histories, achievements, etc. ? (☛ A person and his/her characters)
者 [(2)もの] [liter] meaning: person rank: 2
☆ 彼に逆らう者は誰もいない ⇨ There is no one who rebels against him
☆ 持てる者と持たざる者 ⇨ Those who have and those who don’t. The haves and the have-nots
☆ 最近の若い者 ⇨ Young people these days (☛ Sounds a little old-fashioned)
☆ 村の者は全員知っている ⇨ I know all the villagers, everybody in the village (☛ Sounds a little old-fashioned)
もん [(1)もん] [者(もの)] [coll] [peer] meaning: person rank: 2
☆ 死んだもんに責任を擦り付けるのは簡単だ ⇨ It is an easy way out to blame the dead (☛ A colloquial form of もの)
☆ 若いもんは自由にやらせればいい ⇨ Let young guys do what they want (☛ A colloquial form of もの)
主 [(1)ぬし] [liter] meaning: person rank: 3
☆ 無言電話の主は彼だった ⇨ It was him who had made silent calles
別人 [べつじん] meaning: person rank: 3
☆ 戦争で彼は別人になってしまった ⇨ He has become a different person through the war (due to trauma)
☆ 彼女は着飾って丸で別人のようだ ⇨ She is all dressed up and looks like a different person (☛ The same person looks or becomes a different person)
堅気 [かたぎ] [coll] meaning: person rank: 4
☆ 堅気の人間には手を出すな ⇨ Don’t mess with regular folks (☛ Especially used by mafia members to refer to “regular folks”)
只者 [ただもの] [只者でない] meaning: person rank: 4
☆ あいつは只者じゃない ⇨ He’s not a regular person. He’s someone to be reckoned with
有人 [ゆうじん] meaning: person rank: 4
☆ 有人宇宙飛行 ⇨ Manned space flights
要人 [ようじん] meaning: person rank: 4
☆ 政府要人の護衛 ⇨ Protection of the important, high-ranking, government officials (☛ An important person, typically a government official)
► 接尾辞
者 [しゃ] meaning: person rank: 1
☆ 企業の管理者のための教育ビデオ ⇨ An educational video for corporate managers (☛ There is no clear rule for when to use 者 instead of 人(にん))
☆ 彼がこの車の主任設計者だ ⇨ He is the chief designer of this car (☛ There is no clear rule for when to use 者 instead of 人(にん))
人 [(1)じん] meaning: person rank: 1
☆ その噂は業界人は皆知っていた ⇨ All of the industry people knew about the rumor
☆ 彼は民間人として軍で働いている ⇨ He works for the military as a civilian
☆ 彼はアメリカ人だ ⇨ He is an American (☛ Nationality is always じん)
人 [にん] meaning: person rank: 1
☆ 彼は有名な料理人だ ⇨ He is a famous cook (☛ There is no clear rule for when to use 人 instead of 者(しゃ))
子 [こ] meaning: person rank: 2
☆ 彼はちゃきちゃきの江戸っ子だ ⇨ He is a quintessential Edo, Tokyo, person
屋 [や] meaning: person rank: 2
☆ うちの子供は恥ずかしがり屋だ ⇨ My kid is very shy (☛ A person with a specific personality trait. More informal than 家)
☆ 彼女は大変な頑張り屋だ ⇨ She’s such a hard worker (☛ A person with a specific personality trait. More informal than 家)