Mizu
/mi.zɯ/noun
A Japanese word meaning “water,” used in English mainly in Japanese cultural, culinary, or spiritual contexts.
Did you know?In Shinto purification, water is central to misogi and temizu rituals, where washing the body or hands symbolically removes ritual impurity before approaching the sacred.
Etymological Timeline
Proto-Japonic
Proto-Japonic
*midu
“Reconstructed word for water”
8th Century
Old Japanese
midu
“Water; the form recorded in early Japanese texts”
Middle Japanese
Japanese
midu
“Water, with the consonant later shifting toward z in standard Japanese”
Modern Japanese
Japanese
水 (mizu)
“Water”
Modern English
English
mizu
“A Japanese loanword used in English contexts involving Japanese culture, cuisine, or spirituality”
Explore more surprising origins