1.
midair, the air
The space above the ground, between the earth and the sky. Often used in expressions describing things floating, hanging, or suspended.
ボールが宙に浮いた。
The ball floated in midair.
彼は宙に放り出された。
He was thrown into the air.
足が地面から離れ、体が宙に浮いている感覚がした。
My feet left the ground and I felt my body floating in midair.
2.
space, the universe, the sky
Outer space or the sky above. Appears in compound words related to space and the cosmos.
宙を見上げる。
To look up at the sky.
宇宙の宙は無限に広がっている。
The expanse of space stretches out infinitely.
夜空の宙に無数の星が輝いていた。
Countless stars were shining in the night sky.
USAGE:
Most commonly encountered in the expression 宙に浮く (to float in midair) and the idiom 宙ぶらりん (left hanging, unsettled). As a standalone word, 宙 primarily means midair. Its space meaning is most productive in compounds like 宇宙 (universe/space).
The expression 宙返り means 'somersault' or 'midair flip.'
COMMON COLLOCATIONS:
- 宙に浮く: to float in midair
- 宙ぶらりん: left hanging, in limbo
- 宙返り: somersault, midair flip
- 宙吊り: suspended in midair