(しば)

しば
noun
turf; lawn grass
1. turf; lawn grass; lawn
Short grass grown as ground cover, or a lawn made of such grass. Commonly refers to both the grass itself and the area it covers.
(しば)()る。
Mow the lawn.
(にわ)芝生(しばふ)()った。
We laid turf in the garden.
()どもたちが芝生(しばふ)(うえ)裸足(はだし)(はし)(まわ)っている。
The children are running around barefoot on the lawn.

Refers to lawn grass or turf. The compound 芝生(しばふ) (lawn, grass field) is more common in everyday conversation than (しば) alone. (しば) by itself appears more often in compounds or when talking about the grass material.

COMMON COLLOCATIONS:

  • (しば)()る — to mow the lawn
  • 芝生(しばふ) — lawn, grass
  • 芝生(しばふ)(はい)るな — keep off the grass
  • 人工芝(じんこうしば) — artificial turf
  • 天然芝(てんねんしば) — natural turf/grass
  • (しば)()る — to lay turf

RELATED TERMS:

  • 芝生(しばふ) — lawn (the most common everyday form)
  • 芝刈(しばか)() — lawn mower
  • 芝居(しばい) — play, theater (originally performed on grass-covered areas; now unrelated to grass)

NOTE ON 芝居(しばい):
The word 芝居(しばい) (theater, play) historically derives from (しば) because audiences once sat on the grass to watch performances, but in modern Japanese these words are completely unrelated in meaning.