onsen

O1N1S1E1N1
/ɒnˈsɛn//ˈɒnsɛn/

noun

A (Japanese) hot spring.

“The hottest springs in Japan aren't in the north but at the Obama Onsen outside Nagasaki.”

OriginJapanese 温泉 ← Middle Chinese 溫泉 →
UncommonScrabble 5
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Meanings

nounonsen (plural onsen or onsens)

plural onsens

  1. A (Japanese) hot spring.

    The hottest springs in Japan aren't in the north but at the Obama Onsen outside Nagasaki.

  2. A Japanese-style resort hotel at a natural hot spring, offering on-site bathing.

    We stayed at a traditional onsen with tatami, yukata, and kaiseki at Onyang outside Seoul.

Origin

  1. Middle Chinese溫泉“hot springs”
  2. Japanese温泉
  3. Englishonsen

From Japanese 温泉 (onsen), from Middle Chinese 溫泉 ('won dzjwen, “hot springs”), from 溫 /温 (wēn, “warm”) + 泉 (quán, “spring[s]”). Compare the modern Mandarin pronunciation 溫泉 /温泉 (wēnquán).

More words from Japanese, Middle Chinese

Full word history & related roots →

Translations

Arabic أُون-سِن
  • أُون-سِن (ʔon-sen)a Japanese hot spring; a Japanese-style resort hotel at a hot spring
Bulgarian онсе́н
  • онсе́н (onsén)a Japanese hot spring; a Japanese-style resort hotel at a hot spring
Chinese Mandarin 溫泉 /温泉
  • 溫泉 /温泉 (wēnquán)a Japanese hot spring; a Japanese-style resort hotel at a hot spring
Finnish onsen
  • onsena Japanese hot spring; a Japanese-style resort hotel at a hot spring
French onsen
  • onsena Japanese hot spring; a Japanese-style resort hotel at a hot spring
German Onsen
  • Onsena Japanese hot spring; a Japanese-style resort hotel at a hot spring
Indonesian onsen
  • onsena Japanese hot spring; a Japanese-style resort hotel at a hot spring
Japanese 温泉
  • 温泉 (onsen)a Japanese hot spring; a Japanese-style resort hotel at a hot spring
Korean 온천, 온센
  • 온천 (oncheon)a Japanese hot spring; a Japanese-style resort hotel at a hot spring
  • 온센 (onsen)a Japanese hot spring; a Japanese-style resort hotel at a hot spring
Portuguese onsen
  • onsena Japanese hot spring; a Japanese-style resort hotel at a hot spring
Russian онсэ́н, онсе́н
  • онсэ́н (onsɛ́n)a Japanese hot spring; a Japanese-style resort hotel at a hot spring
  • онсе́н (onsɛ́n)a Japanese hot spring; a Japanese-style resort hotel at a hot spring
Tagalog onsen
  • onsena Japanese hot spring; a Japanese-style resort hotel at a hot spring
Thai บ่อพุร้อน, อนเซ็น
  • บ่อพุร้อน (bɔ̀ɔ-pú-rɔ́ɔn)a Japanese hot spring; a Japanese-style resort hotel at a hot spring
  • อนเซ็น (on-sen)a Japanese hot spring; a Japanese-style resort hotel at a hot spring
Ukrainian онсе́н
  • онсе́н (onsén)a Japanese hot spring; a Japanese-style resort hotel at a hot spring

Rhymes & wordplay

Anagrams

sonnenonesEnson
Cite this entry
APA

onsen. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 3, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/onsen

MLA

“onsen.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/onsen. Accessed November 3, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “onsen,” accessed November 3, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/onsen.

Source: onsen on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.