I'm a little lost on which one to use for monster. Is there a different
meaning between the two? Which one is better to use for monster; [怪物]{かいぶつ} or
[化]{ば}け[物]{もの}? Thank you in advance! :)
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meaning
Monster/Kaibutsu question: 怪物 or 化け物
WWWJDIC indicates 化物 as "goblin; apparition; monster; ghost; phantom; spectre;
specter" while a search for 怪物 returns just "monster". So going by these
definitions, the first would be a more general term that you can apply to all
sorts of fantastic and/or paranormal creatures, whereas the latter would seem
to describe a more specific type of being.

This coincides with my personal opinion. When I hear or read 怪物, I think of a
more or less large...well, monster...with animalistic traits or body parts
like fangs, fur, etc. Also, I would imagine it as not being very intelligent.
As I already said though, this is very subjective.

Now, 化物 is the term that I come across way more often than 怪物 in Manga, Anime,
Games, Movies, etc. As stated above, it's used for all sorts of creatures.
Note that people can also be called 化物, for example if they are particularly
cruel, have superhuman powers, etc.

Also, there's the term 怪獣 for huge monsters like Godzilla and King Kong. 怪獣映画
is it's own gerne of film and I think they also call the monsters in the
Pacific Rim franchise 怪獣.

So in the end, it depends on the context, as it often is the case in Japanese,
but I think you are almost always safe to use 化物.
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化物 is more of a supernatural entity, like a ghost or spectre with ethereal
form.

怪物 is more of a terrestrial monster type of creature with physical form.
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We need to clarify what kind of monsters you are dealing with. I think the
safest catch-all, neutral term for monsters is simply モンスター if we don't have
any context.

化け物 tends to refer to Japanese _yokai_ or has a fairly negative/derogatory
connotation. 怪物 tends to refer to large and strong creatures like dragons and
griffins.

_Pikachu_ and _Cookie Monster_ are safely called モンスター, but I hesitate to call
them 化け物/怪物.
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