When you're talking about how long people work, you'll use the term 労働時間 (ろうどうじかん - rōdōjikan). This word literally combines 労働 (rōdō), meaning 'labor' or 'work,' and 時間 (jikan), meaning 'time.' So, it directly translates to 'working hours.'
You'll hear this term often in discussions about employment, work-life balance, and company policies. For instance, if you're asking about the typical length of a workday or discussing regulations around overtime, 労働時間 is the go-to phrase.
Let's talk about a practical and essential Japanese term for anyone working or living in Japan: 労働時間 (rōdō jikan). This simply means "working hours." Understanding how it's used and how it relates to similar words will help you navigate daily conversations and workplace situations.
§ What is 労働時間 (rōdō jikan)?
- Japanese Word
- 労働時間 (rōdō jikan)
- Meaning
- Working hours.
- CEFR Level
- B1
労働時間 (rōdō jikan) refers to the official or actual time spent working. It's a formal and common term used in workplaces, laws, and discussions about employment.
§ Examples of 労働時間 in use
今日の労働時間は8時間です。
Kyō no rōdō jikan wa hachi jikan desu.
Today's working hours are 8 hours.
残業で労働時間が長くなっています。
Zangyō de rōdō jikan ga nagaku natte imasu.
Working hours are getting longer due to overtime.
フレックスタイム制なので、労働時間を調整できます。
Furekkusu taimu sei nano de, rōdō jikan o chōsei dekimasu.
Since it's a flextime system, I can adjust my working hours.
§ Similar words and when to use 労働時間 vs alternatives
While 労働時間 specifically refers to "working hours," there are other related terms you might hear. Let's break them down:
- 勤務時間 (kinmu jikan): This also means "working hours" or "service hours." It's very similar to 労働時間 and often used interchangeably, especially in a business context. However, 勤務時間 can sometimes have a slightly broader nuance, referring to the hours one is on duty or at their post, not just the active working time. For instance, if you're on standby but not actively performing a task, it might still fall under 勤務時間. When in doubt, 労働時間 is a safe bet for general "working hours."
私の勤務時間は9時から5時までです。
Watashi no kinmu jikan wa kuji kara goji made desu.
My working/service hours are from 9 to 5. - 残業時間 (zangyō jikan): This specifically means "overtime hours." It's a subset of 労働時間 that goes beyond the regular scheduled hours. You'll hear this often in discussions about extra work. If you want to talk about *just* the extra hours, use 残業時間.
今週は残業時間が多かったです。
Konshū wa zangyō jikan ga ōkatta desu.
This week, I had many overtime hours. - 定時 (teiji): This refers to "regular working hours" or "fixed time." It's often used when talking about the normal start and end times of a workday. It's not about the duration, but the specific times. So, if you say 定時で帰る (teiji de kaeru), it means leaving at the regular quitting time.
今日は定時で帰ります。
Kyō wa teiji de kaerimasu.
I'm leaving at the regular time today.
In summary:
- Use 労働時間 (rōdō jikan) when you mean "working hours" in a general, often official or legal sense. It focuses on the duration of work.
- Use 勤務時間 (kinmu jikan) when you mean "working hours" or "on-duty hours," often interchangeable with 労働時間 but can imply being at your post.
- Use 残業時間 (zangyō jikan) when you specifically mean "overtime hours."
- Use 定時 (teiji) when you're referring to the "scheduled start/end times" of work.
Getting these terms straight will make your conversations about work much clearer and more natural. Keep practicing, and you'll master them in no time!
Beispiele nach Niveau
私の労働時間は毎日午前9時から午後5時までです。
My working hours are from 9 AM to 5 PM every day.
彼は労働時間がとても長いです。
His working hours are very long.
労働時間を短くしたいです。
I want to shorten my working hours.
日本の会社の労働時間は長いですか。
Are working hours long at Japanese companies?
アルバイトの労働時間は週に20時間です。
My part-time job's working hours are 20 hours a week.
労働時間について質問があります。
I have a question about working hours.
この仕事の労働時間は普通です。
The working hours for this job are normal.
労働時間を減らすことはできますか。
Can I reduce my working hours?
労働時間を短縮することで、従業員のワークライフバランスが向上すると期待されています。
By reducing working hours, it is expected that employees' work-life balance will improve.
彼は労働時間が不規則で、体調を崩しやすいと悩んでいました。
He was worried that his irregular working hours made him prone to poor health.
フレックスタイム制を導入することで、従業員が自身のライフスタイルに合わせて労働時間を調整できるようになります。
By introducing a flextime system, employees can adjust their working hours to suit their own lifestyles.
残業続きで労働時間が長くなり、家族との時間がなかなか取れないのが現状です。
Due to continuous overtime, working hours have become long, and it's difficult to find time with family.
企業は、従業員の健康を守るために適切な労働時間管理を行う必要があります。
Companies need to manage working hours appropriately to protect employee health.
パンデミックの影響で、多くの企業が在宅勤務を導入し、労働時間の柔軟性が高まりました。
Due to the pandemic, many companies introduced telework, increasing flexibility in working hours.
新しい法律により、労働時間の上限が定められ、過労死防止への取り組みが進められています。
Due to new laws, an upper limit on working hours has been set, and efforts to prevent death from overwork are progressing.
彼女は、短時間勤務制度を利用して、育児と仕事を両立させるための労働時間を調整しています。
She is adjusting her working hours using a reduced-hours system to balance childcare and work.
Grammatikmuster
Satzmuster
Noun は 労働時間 です。
私の労働時間は長いです。
Noun の 労働時間。
今日の労働時間。
Verb-て-form から 労働時間 です。
9時から労働時間です。
労働時間 が Adjective。
労働時間が短いです。
労働時間 を Verb-ます-form。
労働時間を守ります。
労働時間 に Verb-ます-form。
労働時間に働きます。
労働時間 は Verb-る-form こと が できます。
労働時間は調整することができます。
Noun は 労働時間 を Verb-ます-form。
会社は労働時間を管理します。
Im Alltag üben
Kontexte aus dem Alltag
職場での会話 (Workplace conversation)
- 労働時間について話し合う (Discussing working hours)
- 労働時間を守る (Adhere to working hours)
- 労働時間を見直す (Review working hours)
求人情報 (Job advertisements)
- 労働時間〇〇時間/週 (Working hours: XX hours/week)
- 柔軟な労働時間 (Flexible working hours)
- 短い労働時間 (Short working hours)
ニュース記事 (News articles)
- 長時間労働 (Long working hours)
- 労働時間短縮 (Reduction in working hours)
- 労働時間の規制 (Regulation of working hours)
友人との会話 (Conversation with friends)
- 私の労働時間は長い (My working hours are long)
- もっと労働時間を減らしたい (I want to reduce my working hours more)
- 理想の労働時間 (Ideal working hours)
政府の政策 (Government policy)
- 労働時間改革 (Working hour reform)
- 労働時間の多様化 (Diversification of working hours)
- 労働時間に関する法案 (Bill concerning working hours)
Gesprächseinstiege
"あなたの会社では、平均的な労働時間はどのくらいですか？ (How long are the average working hours at your company?)"
"理想の労働時間についてどう思いますか？ (What do you think about ideal working hours?)"
"労働時間短縮の動きについて、どう思いますか？ (What do you think about the movement to reduce working hours?)"
"残業が多いと、労働時間の管理は難しいですか？ (Is it difficult to manage working hours if there's a lot of overtime?)"
"労働時間とワークライフバランスの関係について、どう考えますか？ (What do you think about the relationship between working hours and work-life balance?)"
Tagebuch-Impulse
あなたの現在の労働時間について、良い点と改善したい点を書き出してください。 (Write down the good points and points you want to improve about your current working hours.)
理想の労働時間を具体的に描写し、それがあなたの生活にどのような影響を与えるか考えてみましょう。 (Describe your ideal working hours concretely and consider how they would affect your life.)
労働時間の長短が、個人の幸福度や生産性にどのように影響すると考えますか？ (How do you think the length of working hours affects individual happiness and productivity?)
もしあなたが会社の経営者なら、従業員の労働時間をどのように設定しますか？ (If you were a company manager, how would you set employees' working hours?)
過去に経験した、労働時間に関する印象的な出来事やエピソードを詳しく書き記してください。 (Write in detail about a memorable event or episode related to working hours that you've experienced.)
Teste dich selbst 30 Fragen
Choose the correct hiragana for the Japanese word: ろうどうじかん
The correct hiragana for 'working hours' is ろうどうじかん, which corresponds to the kanji 労働時間.
Which of these means 'working hours'?
労働時間 (ろうどうじかん) means working hours. 休憩時間 (きゅうけいじかん) means break time. 勉強時間 (べんきょうじかん) means study time. 睡眠時間 (すいみんじかん) means sleeping hours.
I have long _____.
If you want to say 'I have long working hours', you would use 労働時間 (ろうどうじかん). The other options don't fit the context: 楽しい時間 (たのしいじかん) means fun time, 短い時間 (みじかいじかん) means short time, and 暇な時間 (ひまなじかん) means free time.
労働時間 (ろうどうじかん) means 'lunch break'.
労働時間 (ろうどうじかん) means 'working hours', not 'lunch break'. 'Lunch break' is 昼休み (ひるやすみ).
You can use 労働時間 to talk about the hours you spend at your job.
Yes, 労働時間 (ろうどうじかん) specifically refers to the hours spent working at a job.
労働時間 (ろうどうじかん) can be used to describe the time you spend sleeping.
No, 労働時間 (ろうどうじかん) refers to working hours. The time you spend sleeping is 睡眠時間 (すいみんじかん).
私の会社の___は午前9時から午後5時までです。
The sentence is talking about the hours from 9 AM to 5 PM, which refers to 'working hours'.
彼は毎日、長い___をしています。
The context implies 'working long hours'.
残業で___が長くなりました。
Overtime ('残業') increases 'working hours'.
日本の会社の___は一般的に長いです。
This sentence is a general statement about 'working hours' in Japanese companies.
今日は___が短いので、早く帰れます。
If 'working hours' are short, you can go home early.
新しい法律で、___が短縮されるかもしれません。
A new law might shorten 'working hours'.
Which word means 'working hours'?
労働時間 (ろうどうじかん) means working hours. 休憩時間 (きゅうけいじかん) means break time. 勉強時間 (べんきょうじかん) means study time. 睡眠時間 (すいみんじかん) means sleeping hours.
Choose the best word to complete the sentence: 私の会社の___は、1日8時間です。
The sentence means 'My company's ___ is 8 hours a day.' '労働時間' (working hours) fits best. '休み時間' (break time), '食事時間' (meal time), and '遊び時間' (play time) don't make sense in this context.
Which sentence correctly uses 労働時間?
The correct sentence means 'He is tired from long working hours.' The other options don't make sense: 'I travel with short working hours,' 'Make delicious working hours,' and 'Read new working hours' are all grammatically incorrect or nonsensical.
「労働時間」は「休み時間」と同じ意味です。
「労働時間」 (working hours) と 「休み時間」 (break time) は異なる意味です。
「労働時間」は「ろうどうじかん」と読みます。
はい、その通りです。「労働時間」の正しい読み方は「ろうどうじかん」です。
日本で働く人は、労働時間を守る必要があります。
はい、これは事実です。日本では、働く人は定められた労働時間を守る必要があります。
You worked overtime today. Write a short message to your family or friends explaining that you'll be home late because of your working hours. Use "労働時間" in your message.
Well written! Good try! Check the sample answer below.
Sample answer
ごめんね、今日は労働時間が長くて、帰りが遅くなります。
Imagine you're discussing work-life balance with a Japanese friend. Write a sentence expressing that long working hours are a problem. Use "労働時間".
Well written! Good try! Check the sample answer below.
Sample answer
日本の労働時間は長すぎるのが問題だと思います。
You are writing a short diary entry about your new part-time job. Mention that your working hours are flexible. Use "労働時間".
Well written! Good try! Check the sample answer below.
Sample answer
新しいアルバイトは労働時間が柔軟で助かります。
What are A and B talking about?
Read this passage:
A: 毎日、労働時間が長くて疲れますね。 B: そうですね。もっと短くなるといいのに。
What are A and B talking about?
Both A and B mention 労働時間 (working hours) and the desire for them to be shorter.
Both A and B mention 労働時間 (working hours) and the desire for them to be shorter.
What is the company trying to achieve by strictly managing employees' working hours?
Read this passage:
会社は従業員の労働時間を厳しく管理しています。これにより、残業が減り、健康的な働き方ができるようになりました。
What is the company trying to achieve by strictly managing employees' working hours?
The passage states that it reduces overtime (残業が減り) and allows for healthy work styles (健康的な働き方ができるようになりました).
The passage states that it reduces overtime (残業が減り) and allows for healthy work styles (健康的な働き方ができるようになりました).
What is the new law about?
Read this passage:
新しい法律では、労働時間の上限が定められています。企業はこの新しいルールを守る必要があります。
What is the new law about?
The passage mentions 労働時間の上限 (maximum working hours) being set by the new law.
The passage mentions 労働時間の上限 (maximum working hours) being set by the new law.
The sentence discusses overtime work and legal working hours.
This sentence is about reducing working hours and work-life balance.
The sentence talks about someone's long working hours and health concerns.
Read this aloud:
日本の労働時間規制についてどう思いますか？
Focus: 日本の (Nihon no)
Du hast gesagt:
Speech recognition is not supported in your browser. Try Chrome or Edge.
Read this aloud:
フレックスタイム制が労働時間にどのような影響を与えるか、説明してください。
Focus: フレックスタイム制 (Furekkusu taimu sei)
Du hast gesagt:
Speech recognition is not supported in your browser. Try Chrome or Edge.
Read this aloud:
あなたは理想の労働時間は何時間だと思いますか？
Focus: 理想の (Risou no)
Du hast gesagt:
Speech recognition is not supported in your browser. Try Chrome or Edge.
/ 30 correct
Perfect score!
Verwandte Inhalte
Dieses Wort in anderen Sprachen
Mehr work Wörter
調整
A1The act of making small changes to something to achieve a desired fit, function, or balance. In a work context, it specifically refers to coordinating schedules or aligning different opinions to reach an agreement.
有利な
B1Advantageous or favorable.
承知する
B1To acknowledge, agree; to be aware of and consent to something.
年収
B1Annual income; yearly salary.
応募
B1To apply for a position, a competition, a prize, or a public offer. It indicates a proactive step to participate in something.
応募する
B1To apply for a job or position.
～と同時に
B1At the same time as, simultaneously with.
勤怠
B1Attendance record; presence or absence from work.
係員
A2Person in charge; attendant.
ぎんこういん
A2Bank employee.
