What is the Kanji for "Company"?

If you are wondering what is the Japanese Kanji for "Company", you've come to the right place!

The Japanese Kanji for "Company" is "社".

This kanji has 2 readings:

Its kunyomi reading is "Yashiro".

Its onyomi reading is "Sha".

kunyomi readings are based on the pronunciation of native Japanese words, and onyomi readings are based on the Chinese pronunciation of the character.

If you visually breakdown this kanji, you can see is made up of 2 parts:

The kanji "土" means "Soil" and can be read as "Tsuchi", "To", and "Do". And The radical "礻" means "Cult" .

Now, let's make sure you understand this kanji the other way around too.

What does the kanji "社" mean in japanese?

"社" means "Company".

Japanese School Students learn this kanji in Second Grade, while foreigners may learn this kanji in preparation for the JLPT N4 exam.

Here are some words that use this kanji:

社会: "Society". The Japanese noun '社会 (しゃかい)' refers to a community of people living together and interacting with each other within a shared environment, such as a country, city, or other social group. It encompasses the social, economic, political, and cultural aspects that define a group of people. For example: She is an active member of society - (彼女は社会の活発な構成員です). The laws and norms of society - (社会の法律と規範).

会社: "Company". The Japanese noun '会社 (かいしゃ)' means 'company'. It refers to a business organization that provides goods or services and is owned by shareholders. Companies can range from small privately-owned enterprises to large publicly-traded corporations. For example: He works at a software company - (彼はソフトウェア会社に勤めている). I want to start my own company - (自分の会社を始めたい).

社: "Company". The Japanese suffix '社 (しゃ)' is used to indicate a company, firm, or organization. It is commonly found at the end of company names, such as '株式会社 (かぶしきがいしゃ)' which means 'joint-stock company'. This suffix conveys the meaning of a formal, official business entity. For example: Sony Corporation - (ソニー社), Mitsubishi Company - (三菱社)

社員: "Employee". The Japanese noun '社員 (しゃいん)' means 'employee'. This word refers to a person who works for a company or organization. It is a general term that can be used to describe any worker within an organization, regardless of their specific role or position. For example: The new employee started work today - (新しい社員が今日仕事を始めた). I am an employee of the company - (私はその会社の社員です).

社長: "President". The Japanese noun '社長 (しゃちょう)' refers to the president or chief executive officer of a company or organization. It is a formal title used to address the highest-ranking individual within a business hierarchy. For example: The president of the company gave a speech - (社長が会社の演説を行った). She is the president of the local chamber of commerce - (彼女は地元商工会議所の社長である).

神社: "Shrine". The noun '神社 (じんじゃ)' refers to a Shinto shrine, a sacred place of worship in the Shinto religion of Japan. Shinto shrines are typically located in natural settings such as forests or on mountainsides, and they often feature impressive architecture, torii gates, and various Shinto symbols. These shrines are places where people come to pray, make offerings, and connect with the kami (Shinto deities). For example: I visit the shrine every New Year's Day - (新年の日に神社に参りました).

社会人: "Working adult". The Japanese noun '社会人 (しゃかいじん)' refers to a working adult, someone who is employed and participating in society. This term is used to distinguish people who have entered the workforce from students or those who are not yet employed. It carries connotations of maturity, responsibility and being a contributing member of society. For example: She became a working adult after graduating from university - (彼女は大学を卒業してから社会人になった).

商社: "Trading company". The noun '商社 (しょうしゃ)' refers to a trading company. These are large corporations that engage in the import, export, and wholesale distribution of goods and commodities. They often have extensive global networks and play a key role in international trade and commerce. For example: The trading company expanded into new markets - (商社は新しい市場に進出しました).

新聞社: "Newspaper company". The Japanese noun '新聞社 (しんぶんしゃ)' refers to a 'newspaper company' or 'news organization'. It is used to describe a business that publishes and distributes newspapers. These companies employ journalists, editors, and other staff to research, write, and publish news articles. For example: The newspaper company published an important article - (新聞社は重要な記事を掲載した).

社会科学: "Social science". The Japanese term '社会科学 (しゃかいかがく)' refers to the academic disciplines that study human society and social relationships. This includes fields such as economics, political science, sociology, anthropology, and psychology. Social sciences aim to understand how societies function and evolve, and to address social issues. For example: My major is social science - (私の専攻は社会科学です).

社説: "Editorial". The Japanese noun '社説 (しゃせつ)' means 'editorial'. An editorial is an article in a newspaper or magazine that gives the publication's own opinion on an issue. It is typically written by the editor or editorial board to present the publication's stance on a particular topic. Editorials often discuss current events and aim to persuade readers to a certain viewpoint. For example: The newspaper's editorial supported the new policy - (新しい政策について、新聞社の社説は支持した). The editorial criticized the government's handling of the crisis - (危機への対応について、政府を批判する社説が書かれた).

出版社: "Publisher". The noun '出版社 (しゅっぱんしゃ)' refers to a company or organization that prepares and issues books, magazines, newspapers, or other written material for public distribution and sale. A publisher is responsible for overseeing the entire publishing process, from acquiring manuscripts to marketing and distributing the final product. For example: The publishing house released a new bestseller - (出版社は新しいベストセラーを発売した). I sent my manuscript to the publisher - (原稿を出版社に送りました).

社債: "Bond". The Japanese word '社債 (しゃさい)' refers to a bond or debt security issued by a company. It is a type of corporate bond that represents a loan to the issuing company. These bonds are typically sold to investors and provide the company with capital for funding operations or expansion. For example: The company issued 社債 to raise money for a new factory - (会社は新しい工場のために社債を発行した).

社内: "Company". The Japanese noun '社内 (しゃない)' refers to the inside or internal environment of a company or organization. It is used to describe anything that is related to or occurs within the company itself, as opposed to outside of it. For example: The company held a meeting within the company - (社内で会議が開かれた). The company's policies apply within the company - (社内の方針が適用される).

本社: "Headquarters". The Japanese noun '本社 (ほんしゃ)' refers to the main office or headquarters of a company or organization. It is the primary location where the central management and key operations of the business are based. For example: The company's headquarters is located in Tokyo - (本社は東京にある). Our headquarters is moving to a new building - (私たちの本社が新しいビルに移転します).

入社: "To join". The Japanese verbal noun '入社 (にゅうしゃ)' means 'to join (a company)'. It refers to the process of becoming an employee at a new company or organization. This noun is commonly used when discussing new hires, company recruitments, and the transition from being a student to starting one's professional career. For example: He joined the company last month - (彼は先月その会社に入社した). I will join the company next April - (私は来年4月にその会社に入社する).

自社: "Own company". The Japanese noun '自社 (じしゃ)' means 'own company'. This term refers to a business or organization that one works for or owns. It is used to distinguish one's own company from other companies or competitors. For example: I work at my own company - (私は自社で働いています). Our own company is growing rapidly - (我々の自社は急速に成長しています).

To make really sure you learn this Kanji, I've prepared an interactive lesson for you. You are going to learn the readings and meanings of this kanji.

But first, you need to know a little bit about Hiragana and Katakana.

Hiragana and katakana are japanese syllabaries, this means that each character represents a syllable.

This are the characters you need to know for this lesson:

The hiragana "し" is read as "shi". The hiragana "や" is read as "ya". And The hiragana "ろ" is read as "ro".

Heres a quick tutorial on how to use it. You'll be asked three type of questions: meaning, reading, and writing.

For meanings questions all you have to do is type the english meaning. If there is more than one meaning, you have to include them all in your answer separating them by commas (,).

For Reading questions you have to type the reading in romaji (roman letters, our normal alphabet) and it'll be automatically converted to hiragana if necessary. If there is more than one reading, you have to include them all in your answer separating them by commas (,).

For Writing questions some options will appear and all you have to do is select the correct ones.