The Meaning of bunshō [文章] In Japanese

文章
ぶんしょう
Romaji: bunshō N3

What does 文章 mean?

Translation and Meaning

text, writing, prose, composition

Definition

What does 文章 mean? It refers to written language as a body of text, especially prose or a piece of writing; in everyday use it denotes the content that is written rather than spoken, and can also describe the craft of composing text.

Type

noun (名詞)

Stroke Order

Meanings

  • the body of written text, especially prose, essays, and articles
  • literary expression or style in written form
  • the main text portion of a document or article

Etymology

文 (bun), 章 (shō) are the on’yomi readings; bunshō is formed by combining their on’yomi to denote written text.

Origin

Borrowed through Sino-Japanese scholarly usage; earliest attested usage in classical Chinese literature, adopted into Japanese during the Heian period, and later common in education and literature.

Composition

  • 文 bun: writing, sentence, literature
  • 章 shō: chapter, section

Usage

Used in formal and academic contexts to denote writing, prose, or the craft of composition; common in education, journalism, and literary criticism; contributes to phrases related to writing ability and textual analysis.
💡 Tips
Mnemonic: imagine a book where one kanji for writing sits above a component meaning chapter; together they cue ‘text’ as a whole; recall bun read as bun and shō as shō to remember the compound meaning.

Variations

  • 作文 sakubun — composition, essay
  • 本文 honbun — main text, body text
  • 文書 bunsho — document, formal writing

Example Phrases

  • 今朝、メールの文章を丁寧に直した。
    Kesa, mēru no bunshō o teinei ni naoshita.
    This morning, I carefully revised the email text.
    Lista:
    • 今朝 (kesa) – this morning
    • メール (meeru) – email
    • の (no) – of
    • 文章 (bunshō) – text
    • を (o) – (object marker)
    • 丁寧に (teinei ni) – carefully
    • 直した (naoshita) – revised
    In this sentence, 「文章」 is the object of 直す (to revise), marked by を.
文章