Translation guide
Clothing worn outdoors, such as coats, jackets, and other garments designed to be worn over other clothes.
Clothing worn over other clothes, especially outdoors
General term for outerwear, jacket, or coat. Commonly used in daily conversation.
寒いので上着を着てください。
It's cold, so please put on a jacket.
上着を脱いで楽にしてください。
Take off your jacket and make yourself comfortable.
Loanword from English 'outer', used in fashion contexts to refer to outerwear like coats and jackets.
このアウターは軽くて暖かい。
This outerwear is light and warm.
Formal or literary term for overcoat or cloak. Less common in everyday speech.
彼は黒い外套を羽織っていた。
He wore a black overcoat.
A heavy garment worn for warmth, typically long-sleeved and extending below the hips
The most common word for a coat, used for various styles (e.g., winter coat, trench coat).
冬用のコートを買いました。
I bought a winter coat.
コートを着ないと風邪をひくよ。
You'll catch a cold if you don't wear a coat.
A short, light garment worn on the upper body, often with a front opening
General term for jacket, including suit jackets, casual jackets, etc.
このジャケットは春にぴったりです。
This jacket is perfect for spring.
ジャケットを羽織るだけでおしゃれに見える。
Just throwing on a jacket makes you look stylish.
Traditional Japanese jacket worn over a kimono. Not used for Western-style jackets.
A coat worn to protect from rain
Standard term for raincoat.
雨が降りそうだからレインコートを持っていこう。
It looks like rain, so let's bring a raincoat.
Traditional Japanese raincoat, often made of waterproof fabric or plastic. Can sound slightly old-fashioned.
上着 (うわぎ) is a broad term for any outer garment worn on the upper body, including jackets, coats, and cardigans. コート is specifically a coat, usually heavier and longer. ジャケット is a jacket, typically lighter and shorter. In casual fashion contexts, アウター is also used as a catch-all for fashionable outerwear.
The verb 着る is used for putting on or wearing upper-body garments, including all types of outerwear. For example: コートを着る (to wear a coat).
Specifically an overcoat, a heavy coat worn over other clothes in cold weather.
オーバーコートを着て出かけた。
I went out wearing an overcoat.
He wore a haori over his kimono.
子供の頃は雨合羽を着て通学した。
When I was a child, I wore a raincoat to school.