Sakubun
/sɑːˈkuː.bun/noun
A Japanese term for a written composition or essay, especially as a school assignment.
Did you know?Sakubun is written with characters meaning “compose” and “sentence,” so the word literally frames writing as the act of building thought into language.
Etymological Timeline
Classical Chinese
Chinese
作文
“to compose writing; written composition”
Japanese (early borrowing)
JP
作文
“a composition or written piece”
Modern Japanese
JP
さくぶん / sakubun
“a composition, essay, or writing assignment”
Modern English
English
sakubun
“a borrowed Japanese term referring to a composition or essay task”
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