保存
ほぞん
hozon
The term "hozon" describes the act of maintaining something in its current state to prevent decay, loss, or alteration. It carries a strong nuance of "protection" and "permanence."
In physical contexts, it is used for food (preventing spoilage), historical artifacts (preventing deterioration), or nature (preventing destruction). It differs from "hokan" (保管), which refers to the act of storing something in a specific place for safekeeping. While "hokan" focuses on the location and the act of putting something away, "hozon" focuses on the condition and the quality of the object being kept.
In digital contexts, "hozon" is the standard term for "saving" data. It refers to the process of writing volatile memory (RAM) to a non-volatile storage medium (HDD/SSD) so that the information is not lost when the power is turned off or the application is closed.
When used as a noun in phrases like "hozon-ban" (保存版), it refers to a "collector's edition" or something so valuable that it should be kept permanently.
Meanings
To keep something in its original state or prevent it from spoiling or being lost.
食品を保存する。
Preserve food.
To store digital data in a memory device so that it can be retrieved later.
ファイルを保存する。
Save a file.
Grammar & Conjugations
Irregular Suru Verb (サ変名詞)
hozonshimasu
hozonshimashita
hozonshimasen
hozonshimasen deshita
Examples
編集したドキュメントを保存しないで閉じた。
I closed the edited document without saving it.
設定を保存してからアプリを再起動してください。
Please restart the app after saving the settings.
この地域の伝統文化を保存する活動に参加する。
I participate in activities to preserve the traditional culture of this region.
パスワードを保存しておけば次回から入力不要だ。
If you save your password, you won't need to enter it next time.