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Tsundoku: meaning, pronunciation and examples

Tsundoku noun. Buying books and letting them pile up unread.

How to say it

tsun-DOH-koo/tsʊnˈdəʊkuː/

3 syllables, stressed on the second (DOH).

Tsundoku in a sentence

Her bedside tsundoku had grown into a tower that wobbled whenever the door slammed.

Every trip to a bookshop feeds my tsundoku.

Similar and opposite

Similar:

  • book hoarding
  • unread pile

Where tsundoku comes from

Japanese, from tsunde oku, to pile things up and leave them, and doku, to read.

Test yourself

Which word fills the gap?

Every trip to a bookshop feeds my _____.

  • philtrum
  • tsundoku
  • lethologica
Show the answer

tsundoku: Every trip to a bookshop feeds my tsundoku.