既視感

1. Origins, structure, and basic meaning

• Structure: 既視感(きしかん) adds 感, feeling, to 既視, having seen something before.
• Basic usage: It denotes déjà vu, the feeling of having seen a place or scene before. It can be used even for a first visit.

2. Common pitfalls and similar expressions

• Feeling versus actual experience
  • 初めて来た町なのに contrasts a first visit with a sense of familiarity. Having 既視感 does not establish an actual earlier visit.
• 覚える as experiencing a feeling
  • In 既視感を覚えた, 覚える(おぼえる) means experiencing a sensation. It does not mean memorizing something or recalling a confirmed memory here.