1.
second floor; upstairs
The floor directly above the ground level of a building. In a typical two-storey Japanese house, this is where bedrooms are usually located, with living areas on the first floor.
二階に上がる。
I'll go upstairs.
寝室は二階にある。
The bedrooms are upstairs.
二階から窓越しに庭を眺めるのが好きだ。
I like looking at the garden through the window from upstairs.
Formed with the counter 階 (floors). Often used in expressions where "upstairs" would be natural in English, including the idiom below.
COMMON COLLOCATIONS:
- 二階に上がる: to go up to the second floor
- 二階から降りる: to come down from the second floor
- 二階建て: two-storey (building)
- 二階席: upper-deck seats (in a vehicle or theater)
IDIOM:
- 二階から目薬: "eye drops from the second floor" — doing something ineffective or roundabout (the medicine never reaches its target).
RELATED FORMS:
- 一階: first floor
- 三階: third floor (note 連濁: かい → がい)