1.
prostitute; sex worker
A woman who engages in sexual acts for payment. A direct, somewhat literary term that appears in historical accounts, literature, and social commentary. In modern discourse, more neutral terms are often preferred.
その小説には娼婦が登場する。
A prostitute appears in that novel.
戦後の混乱期には多くの女性が娼婦として働かざるを得なかった。
During the chaos of the postwar period, many women had no choice but to work as prostitutes.
マネの有名な絵画「オランピア」は娼婦を描いた作品として当時大きな論争を巻き起こした。
Manet's famous painting 'Olympia' sparked great controversy at the time as a work depicting a prostitute.
Composed of 娼 (prostitute) and 婦 (woman). A direct term for a female sex worker that carries historical weight. It appears frequently in literature, historical texts, and discussions of social issues, but is considered too blunt for polite conversation.
COMMON COLLOCATIONS:
- 街の娼婦: streetwalker
- 娼婦として働く: to work as a prostitute
- 娼婦を描く: to depict a prostitute
SIMILAR WORDS:
- 売春婦: prostitute — more clinical, focuses on the act of selling sex
- 遊女: courtesan — historical term for women in licensed pleasure quarters during the Edo period
- 花魁: oiran — a high-ranking courtesan of the Edo period
- 風俗嬢: sex industry worker — modern colloquial term