箪笥(たんす)

たんす
noun
chest of drawers
furniture
1. chest of drawers, dresser, bureau
A piece of furniture with drawers for storing clothes and other items. Traditional Japanese tansu are often made of paulownia wood.
洋服(ようふく)を箪笥(たんす)にしまいました。
I put the clothes away in the dresser.
この箪笥(たんす)は祖母(そぼ)から受(う)け継(つ)いだものです。
This chest of drawers was passed down from my grandmother.
桐(きり)の箪笥(たんす)は高級(こうきゅう)です。
Paulownia wood chests are high-end.
引(ひ)っ越(こ)しのとき、重(おも)い箪笥(たんす)を二人(ふたり)で運(はこ)んだ。
When moving, we carried the heavy chest of drawers between two of us.
母(はは)は季節(きせつ)ごとに箪笥(たんす)の中身(なかみ)を入(い)れ替(か)えて、夏物(なつもの)と冬物(ふゆもの)を分(わ)けている。
My mother swaps out the contents of the dresser each season, separating summer and winter clothes.

箪笥(たんす) - the kanji is complex and often written in hiragana.

Traditional types

桐(きり) (paulownia) properties:

  • Moisture resistant
  • Protects from insects
  • Lightweight yet durable
  • Ideal for storing silk kimono

Expression

  • 箪笥(たんす)の肥(こ)やし (lit. "fertilizer for the dresser") - clothes that are bought and then never worn

Modern equivalents: チェスト (a storage chest) and ドレッサー (a vanity table with a mirror, not a chest of drawers - the English and Japanese senses differ).

Related Words

Related: 引(ひ)き出(だ)し (drawer)
Related: 家具(かぐ) (furniture)
Related: ドレッサー (dresser; vanity table)
Compare: 衣装棚(いしょうだな) (wardrobe)
Compare: チェスト (chest of drawers)
core
Added 2026.1.14 22:31 · Revised 2026.9.4 21:29
05000/05012_tansu