Japanese

Pronunciation

• (Tokyo) フン [fùń] (Heiban - [0])^[1]
• (Tokyo) フ​ン [fúꜜǹ] (Atamadaka - [1])^[1]
• IPA^(key): [ɸɯ̃ᵝɴ]

Alternative forms

• ふむ ‎(fumu), フム ‎(fumu), ふうむ ‎(fūmu), ふーむ ‎(fūmu), フーム ‎(fūmu), フーン ‎(fūn)

Interjection

フン ‎(romaji fun)

1. (informal, affirmative) hm, uh-huh, yeah
2. (informal, negative) hmm, huh

Usage notes

Informal. When speaking with social strangers or superiors, one would use ええ ‎(ē) or はい ‎(hai) instead for affirmation, and ええ ‎(ē) or あの ‎(ano) for negation. Tone of voice and body language are also used to convey meaning.

Synonyms

• (affirmative): うん ‎(un)
• (negative): ううん ‎(ūn), へん ‎(hen)

Etymology 2

Borrowing from English Hun.^[2][1]

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): [ɸɯ̃ᵝɴ]

Proper noun

フン ‎(romaji Fun)

1. the Huns, the Hun ethnic group: a nomadic group of horse riders originating in Central Asia

Usage notes

May be more often encountered as the more specific compound フン族 ‎(Funzoku).

Synonyms

• フン族 (ぞく) ‎(Funzoku)
• 匈奴 (きょうど) ‎(Kyōdo), 匈奴 (フンヌ) ‎(Funnu)

Etymology 3

Kanji reading.

Pronunciation

• (Tokyo) フ​ン [fúꜜǹ] (Atamadaka - [1])^[1][3]
• IPA^(key): [ɸɯ̃ᵝɴ]

Noun

フン ‎(hiragana ふん, romaji fun)

1. 糞: excrement, feces

Usage notes

Due to the complexity of the kanji character, this word is often spelled in kana instead, usually katakana to contrast visually with surrounding hiragana text.

References

1. 1 2 3 4 2006, 大辞林 (Daijirin), Third Edition (in Japanese), Tōkyō: Sanseidō, ISBN 4-385-13905-9
2. ↑ 1988, 国語大辞典（新装版） (Kokugo Dai Jiten, Revised Edition) (in Japanese), Tōkyō: Shogakukan
3. ↑ 1997, 新明解国語辞典 (Shin Meikai Kokugo Jiten), Fifth Edition (in Japanese), Tōkyō: Sanseidō, ISBN 4-385-13143-0