国語

• Reading: こくご
• Romaji: kokugo
• Kanji breakdown: 国 (koku) — country, nation; 語 (go) — language, word
• Pronunciation: /ko.kɯ.ɡo/

Meaning

National language; Japanese language (as a school subject). The language of a country.

A noun with two main uses: (1) a country's national language in general, and (2) specifically the Japanese language as taught in schools, equivalent to 'Language Arts' or 'English class' in English-speaking countries. 国語辞典 (kokugo jiten) means a Japanese-language dictionary (monolingual), as opposed to a bilingual dictionary.

Examples

1. 国語のテストで漢字をたくさん書いた。 I wrote a lot of kanji on the Japanese language test.
2. 小学校の国語の授業が一番好きだった。 Japanese language arts was my favorite class in elementary school.
3. 国語辞典で知らない言葉を調べた。 I looked up an unfamiliar word in a Japanese dictionary.

Usage Guide

Context: education, school, linguistics

Tone: neutral

Origin & History

Composed of 国 (country, nation) and 語 (language, word). Literally 'country language,' referring to the official language of a nation, and in Japan, synonymous with the Japanese language.

Cultural Context

Era: Meiji

Generation: All ages

Social background: Universal