The Meaning of shusseki [出席] In Japanese

出席
しゅっせき
Romaji: shusseki N5

What does 出席 mean?

Translation and Meaning

attendance, presence

Definition

What does 出席 mean? It denotes the act of being present at a meeting, class, or event, typically indicating attendance rather than participation. In Japanese usage it covers both formal and everyday contexts where someone’s presence is recorded.

Type

noun (suru-verb)

Stroke Order

Meanings

  • primary meaning: presence at a scheduled event or location
  • state of being present as required or expected
  • in official contexts, used to record attendance

Etymology

出 and 席 combine to form the compound; the pronunciation uses the on’yomi shusseki, illustrating typical kanji-based word formation in Japanese.

Origin

Historical emergence is tied to administrative and educational practices in medieval and early modern Japan, with formal attendance tracking becoming standard in schools in the modern era.

Composition

  • 出 means go out or come forth
  • 席 means seat
  • together they convey showing up at a seat or being present at an event

Usage

Used in formal settings like meetings, classes, and events to indicate presence; common with the verb 出席する; collocations include 出席を取る, 出席者, 出席率.
💡 Tips
Mnemonic: imagine stepping out and occupying a chair at a meeting; the idea of going out to take a seat helps recall attendance.

Variations

  • 参加 — participation (sanka)
  • 欠席 — absence (kesseki)
  • 参席 — attendance, presence (sanseki)

Example Phrases

  • 今日は 学校の 授業に 出席 します。
    Kyou wa gakkou no jugyou ni shusseki shimasu.
    I’ll attend today’s class at school.
    Lista:
    • 今日は (Kyou wa) – today
    • 学校の (gakkou no) – school's
    • 授業に (jugyou ni) – to the class
    • 出席 (shusseki) – attendance
    • します。 (shimasu.) – do
    「出席」 é um substantivo que significa presença; aqui ele se usa com します para indicar ‘participar/comparecer’.
  • 今日は町のスポーツ連盟の会合に出席する。
    Kyou wa machi no supootsu renmei no kaigou ni shusseki suru.
    Today I will attend the town’s sports federation meeting.
    Lista:
    • 今日は (Kyou wa) – today
    • 町の (machi no) – town’s
    • スポーツ連盟の (supootsu renmei no) – sports federation’s
    • 会合に (kaigou ni) – to the meeting
    • 出席する (shusseki suru) – attend
    Aqui, 「連盟」 é um substantivo que significa liga/federação; aqui ele funciona como parte de uma expressão possessiva com の, ligando-a à palavra anterior para indicar a liga esportiva da cidade.
  • 会議の出席者に私を含めてください。
    kaigi no shusseki-sha ni watashi o fukumete kudasai.
    Please include me among the attendees of the meeting.
    Lista:
    • 会議 (kaigi) – meeting
    • の (no) – of
    • 出席者 (shusseki-sha) – attendee
    • に (ni) – in/among
    • 私 (watashi) – I
    • を (wo) – (object marker)
    • 含めて (fukumete) – including
    • ください (kudasai) – please
    Core point: 「含める」 means ‘to include’; here it forms the request ‘please include me’ within the group indicated by 会議の出席者に.
出席