san
san Lexical Profile
san Game Scores & Validity
• noun
A title of respect used in Japan or within Japanese contexts, usually appended to a person's name to signify politeness.
"After the corporate merger, the manager respectfully addressed his senior counterpart as Watanabe san."
A member of an indigenous hunter-gatherer people of southern Africa, whose traditional territory spans across the Kalahari Desert.
"The San possess a profound traditional knowledge of the desert's delicate ecosystem and its native flora."
North American An informal clipping of sanatorium, referring to a medical facility designed for the long-term treatment of illnesses such as tuberculosis.
"During the height of the epidemic in the 1920s, recovering patients would spend several months resting at the local san."
Word Nuance & Usage
When referring to the indigenous people of southern Africa, 'San' is typically capitalized. It also appears as an informal lowercase clipping of 'sanatorium' in historical contexts, and as a polite honorific appended to names in Japanese contexts.
• Rhymes for san
• Nearby Words
Word Origin & Etymology
The ethnonym 'San' derives from the Khoekhoe word 'Sān', historically meaning 'foragers'. As a medical facility, it is an early 20th-century clipping of 'sanatorium'. The honorific comes directly from Japanese 'san', a contraction of 'sama'.
Usage Trend
Historical frequency of usage in published text.