弁護

• Reading: べんご
• Romaji: bengo
• Kanji breakdown: 弁 (ben) — speak on behalf, eloquence; 護 (go) — protect, guard
• Pronunciation: /beɴ.ɡo/

Meaning

Defence; advocacy; pleading. Speaking on behalf of another person to defend them from accusation or criticism, especially in a legal context.

Used both in legal contexts (弁護する — to defend, to plead for) and in everyday speech (彼の行動を弁護するつもりはない — I have no intention of defending his actions). 弁護士 (lawyer, attorney) and 弁護団 (defence team) are derived compounds. In court, 弁護 is the formal term for the defence side's representation, as opposed to 検察 (prosecution). The verb 弁護する can also be used informally to mean 'to speak up for someone' in non-legal situations.

Examples

1. 弁護士は被告人の弁護において、アリバイの証拠を丁寧に積み上げていった。 In defending the accused, the lawyer carefully built up a body of alibi evidence.
2. 彼女の行動は誰の目にも問題があったが、幼少期の環境を考えると一概に責めることもできないと弁護する声もあった。 While her actions were clearly problematic in everyone's eyes, there were also voices defending her by pointing to the environment in which she had grown up.
3. 国選弁護人が弁護を引き受けたことで、容疑者はようやく法的な支援を受けられるようになった。 Once the duty counsel agreed to take on the defence, the suspect was finally able to receive legal support.

Usage Guide

Context: law, court, advocacy, interpersonal, media

Tone: neutral to formal

Origin & History

Sino-Japanese compound: 弁 (ben) — eloquence, speak on behalf; 護 (go) — protect, guard. Together they convey the idea of speaking eloquently to protect someone. The use of 弁 in this sense (advocacy, articulation) appears in compounds like 弁論 (debate), 弁明 (justification), and 弁護士 (lawyer).

Cultural Context

Era: Meiji-Modern

Generation: Adult

Social background: Universal