弾丸列車(だんがんれっしゃ)

Literally "bullet train" — 弾丸(だんがん) (bullet) + 列車(れっしゃ) (train). This was the original nickname for the Shinkansen high-speed rail project dating from the wartime era. While 新幹線(しんかんせん) is the standard term in Japan, 弾丸列車(だんがんれっしゃ) is still used colloquially and is the origin of the English term "bullet train."

Common collocations

• 弾丸列車(だんがんれっしゃ)で移動(いどう)する: to travel by bullet train
• 弾丸列車(だんがんれっしゃ)計画(けいかく): bullet train project (historical)

Similar words

• 新幹線(しんかんせん): Shinkansen — the official and far more common term for Japan's high-speed rail
• 高速鉄道(こうそくてつどう): high-speed railway — the formal, technical term
• 超特急(ちょうとっきゅう): super express — an older term for the fastest class of train service

Etymology

The "bullet train" concept originated in a 1939 plan to build a high-speed rail line connecting Tokyo to Shimonoseki. The project was shelved during World War II but revived in the postwar era, culminating in the Tokaido Shinkansen's launch on October 1, 1964.