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My Japanese teacher told me there is no shorter way to say 自動販売機{じどうはんばいき}. However, I found 自販機{じはんき} in my dictionary. Does a word (including slang) for "vending machine" shorter than four morae exist?

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Just 自販 without the 機 is quite common.

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  • Is it new Internet slang? or 若者言葉? – user1016 Oct 16 '13 at 2:47
  • @Chocolate, from you and TokyoNagoya's comments, it seems obvious that this is not as common as I thought. On the other hand, searching on Google, I'm fairly convinced that there are enough cases that it can't be ascribed to typos. I think I personally picked it up more than 10 years ago in a non-internet context in the Tokyo area. – dainichi Oct 16 '13 at 7:27
  • 「若者言葉」かも？TokyoNagoyaさんは若者じゃないからきっと知らな（（殴 – user1016 Oct 16 '13 at 8:20
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The wikipedia article for 自動販売機 confirms that 自販機 can be used as a short form but doesn't list any other variants. 販売機{はんばいき} is another option.

The only slang term I know is ガチャ for those capsule vending machines (with little toys or something inside).

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Never heard or seen 自販 used as a shortened form of 自動販売機 or 自販機. (I have lived half of my life in Tokyo and the other half in Nagoya, and I am a Japanese-speaker to begin with.) The only times I have heard/seen 自販 have been when it was used to mean a "car dealer" （short for 自動車販売）. I am more than curious to find out why that answer has so many upvotes. 　

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    There are many examples on the internet, e.g. google.com/search?q=%22%E8%87%AA%E8%B2%A9%E3%81%AE%E4%B8%8A%22, but given that people don't agree with me that this is common, I'm wondering if its usage is limited in area of time. – dainichi Oct 16 '13 at 5:53
  • @dainichi でも4ページ目まで行くと、こうなっちゃうんですよ・・・　　 Googleの謎・・・ – user1016 Oct 16 '13 at 6:22
  • @Chocolate さん、「自動販売機の上」というシチュエーションが限られているからじゃないでしょうか。「の上」をつけたのは、「自動車販売」や「自動販売」じゃなく、「自動販売機」のケースを見つけるためです。"自販機の上"で検索しても、結局243件しか見つかりません。もっといい検索方法があれば教えて下さい。 – dainichi Oct 16 '13 at 6:54
  • It seems to be accepted by at least some dictionaries, .e.g. weblio.jp/content/%E8%87%AA%E8%B2%A9, that 自販 can be short for 自動販売. My claim that it can be short for 自動販売機 is only based on what I can find on Google and personal experience. – dainichi Oct 16 '13 at 7:03
  • "自販が"でググると1万以上ヒットしますけど、結構「自動車販売」の意味が多いし・・・ここ　(ところで、その辞書、「自動販売の略」って書いてあるし・・・「自動販売機」じゃなく・・・) – user1016 Oct 16 '13 at 8:10

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