センチメートル

Japan uses the metric system, and センチメートル (often written cm) is the standard unit for everyday length measurements. In casual speech and writing, the shortened form センチ is far more common than the full form.

Common collocations

• 何(なん)センチメートル: how many centimeters
• センチメートル単位(たんい): in units of centimeters
• ～センチメートル伸(の)びる: to grow by ~ centimeters
• ～センチメートル離(はな)れる: to be ~ centimeters apart

Similar words

• センチ: centimeter — the casual shortened form, used far more often in daily conversation
• ミリメートル: millimeter — one tenth of a centimeter; used for finer measurements
• メートル: meter — one hundred centimeters; used for longer distances
• 尺(しゃく): shaku — traditional Japanese unit (~30.3 cm), now rarely used outside traditional crafts

Usage

When writing, the abbreviation cm is extremely common. In speech, センチ is used almost exclusively for body and object measurements (e.g., 身長(しんちょう)170センチ). The full form センチメートル appears mainly in technical, educational, or formal contexts.