1.
buying books and leaving them unread; piling up unread books
The habit of acquiring books but letting them pile up without reading them. A playful compound blending 積む (to pile up) with 読 (reading).
積ん読がどんどん増える。
My pile of unread books keeps growing.
また本を買ってしまった。積ん読が止まらない。
I bought another book. I can't stop piling up unread ones.
本棚の半分は積ん読の本で埋まっている。
Half my bookshelf is filled with books I've bought but never read.
ETYMOLOGY:
A playful portmanteau of 積む (to pile up) and 読 (reading, from 読書). The ん connects the two elements, mimicking the sound of 積んでおく (to leave piled up). The word dates to the Meiji era.
USAGE:
Used both as a noun (積ん読の本, unread books) and with する (積ん読する). The word carries a self-deprecating, humorous tone — book lovers use it to describe their own habit. It has been borrowed into English as "tsundoku."
RELATED:
- 精読 (close reading)
- 多読 (extensive reading)
- 読書 (reading books)