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Definition 2024

kaizen

kaizen

English

Noun

kaizen ‎(plural kaizens)

  1. a Japanese business practice of continuous improvement in performance and productivity
  2. continuous improvement in a general way

Translations

See also

Japanese

Romanization

kaizen

  1. rōmaji reading of かいぜん

Etymology

From Japanese 改善 (kaizen かいぜん), from Middle Chinese 改善 (kój-dʒjén) (compare Mandarin gǎishàn 改善), from Old Chinese 改善 (*qˁəʔ-ɡenʔ "to correct errors"), from 改 ("to change") + 善 ("good").

Introduced to English in 1959, by Boyé Lafayette De Mente, in his book Japanese Etiquette and Ethics in Business.

Pronunciation

  • IPA(key): /ˈkaɪˌzɛn/

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