Meaning and Usage
"健康" (けんこう) means "health" or "being healthy," referring to both physical and mental well-being. It is a common noun used in everyday conversation, medical contexts, and wellness discussions.
Common Contexts
You will often see "健康" used when talking about maintaining good health, medical checkups, or lifestyle choices that affect well-being. It can be combined with verbs like 保つ (たもつ, to maintain) or used in phrases like 健康診断 (けんこうしんだん, health checkup).
Collocations and Patterns
- 健康を保つ: to maintain health, used when discussing habits or routines.
- 健康診断: health checkup, a common medical term.
- 健康のために: for the sake of health, often used to explain reasons for certain actions.
Register and Nuance
"健康" is a neutral and polite term suitable for formal and informal situations. It is not casual slang but is widely used in everyday speech.
Common Mistakes
Learners sometimes confuse "健康" with "元気" (げんき), which means energetic or lively. "健康" focuses on overall health status, while "元気" emphasizes energy or mood. Use "健康" when referring to physical or mental health conditions.