Nashi in Japanese: pear, none and without
Nashi can name a pear or express the absence of something. The fruit is written 梨; “none” or “without” can be written 無し. In 砂糖なし, it means without sugar. These are different words that share a kana reading, so use the whole sentence to choose the meaning.
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Pear and absence are different words
The noun 梨 means pear and is read なし. The same kana also represent 無し, expressing absence or a lack. After a noun, it can mean without that thing. Check the readings and meanings in Shogakukan’s Digital Daijisen entries for 梨 and 無し.
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| Written form | Kana reading | Meaning and use |
|---|---|---|
| 梨 | なし | Pear: the fruit you can buy |
| 無し | なし | None or without: 砂糖なし means without sugar |
Examples at a fruit stall and a café
Read each sentence, then open its meaning and explanation. The setting and the surrounding words help you decide. A message containing only nashi may not give you enough information.
- Buying fruit at a stallなしを二つください。
Reveal the meaning and reason
Here it means 梨, pear: ‘Two pears, please.’
The fruit stall and the request for two items point to the fruit. ‘None’ does not fit this purchase.
- Ordering tea at a café紅茶は砂糖なしでお願いします。
Reveal the meaning and reason
砂糖なし means without sugar: ‘Tea without sugar, please.’
The word before nashi is 砂糖, sugar. This is about whether the tea has sugar, not about pears. After a noun, 無し can express the absence of that thing.
- Receiving just one wordなし
Reveal the meaning and reason
The word なし alone does not tell you whether it means pear or none.
A list of fruit names might mean pear; a conversation about sugar might mean none. The first dictionary result is not automatically the right answer for this message.
Noun + nashi: without that thing
砂糖なし combines 砂糖 (sugar) with なし (absence). The café request 紅茶は砂糖なしでお願いします。 means “Tea without sugar, please.” In this request, なしでお願いします asks for the item without the ingredient named before it.
You may also see ミルクなし, without milk. Learn the noun together with nashi so that the phrase connects to something you might actually order.
This lesson covers nashi after a noun. It is not a general replacement for ない or an ending you can attach to every verb to make it negative. Verb negation has its own forms.
Practice: choose the meaning of each sentence
Use the tea order and the fruit purchase to check the two meanings. Open the explanations after making your choices.
In 紅茶は砂糖なしでお願いします。, what does 砂糖なし mean?
Choose first, then check the explanation.
Show explanation
砂糖 means sugar. Nashi expresses its absence here, so the request is for tea without sugar.
At a fruit stall, what are you buying when you say なしを二つください。?
Choose first, then check the explanation.
Show explanation
なし names pears here, and 二つ means two. The request is “Two pears, please.” This is not 無し meaning absence.
Use the sentence when asking Maho about a word
Add an image or text to Maho’s Japanese analysis, check the source text, and read the word and grammar explanations. If nashi is unclear, ask Maho AI which meaning fits this sentence and which surrounding words support it.
To turn the example into review material, follow our Anki and Maho flashcard instructions. Keep the writing, reading, meaning and an example of the same use together. If an AI explanation does not fit the text, check the sentence and a dictionary again.