Translation guide
The English word "class" covers many distinct concepts. This guide breaks them down into practical meanings and shows how to express each naturally in Japanese.
A scheduled period of instruction in a school or course.
The most common word for a class or lesson in an educational setting.
The next class is math.
I was late for class.
A loanword from English, often used for a class as a group of students or a course, especially in language schools or private lessons.
I'm taking an English conversation class.
Refers specifically to a lecture, typically at a university.
The afternoon class (lecture) was boring.
A group of students who study together, often in the same grade or homeroom.
Used for a class as a group of students, especially in elementary through high school.
My class has 30 students.
I get along with my classmates.
Often used in school contexts to denote a specific class group (e.g., Class 1-A).
A more formal term for a class as a unit in a school, often used in educational contexts.
A division of society based on social or economic status.
A group of things sharing common attributes.
The most common word for 'kind' or 'type'.
This shop has various kinds (classes) of bread.
Used for classification or division into categories, often in formal contexts.
A somewhat literary term for category or class.
A level of quality or excellence, often used in phrases like 'first-class' or 'world-class'.
Means 'first-class' or 'top-notch'. Used to describe high quality.
He is a first-class chef.
A suffix meaning '-class' or 'grade', as in 'business class' or 'A-class'.
Business class is more expensive than economy class.
Means 'high-class' or 'luxury', often used for goods and services.
In object-oriented programming, a blueprint for creating objects.
The standard term in programming contexts, borrowed from English.
Create an object from this class.
Stylishness or elegance in appearance or behavior.
While クラス is a common loanword, it doesn't cover all meanings of 'class'. For school lessons, use 授業. For social class, use 階級. Using クラス for these can sound unnatural.
授業 refers to the lesson itself, while クラス often refers to the group of students or the course as a whole. If you say 'I have class now', 授業 is more natural than クラス.
I have class now.
She's got real class.
He is in class 2 of the first grade.
学級委員に選ばれた。
I was elected class representative.
社会階層について研究している。
I'm researching social class (stratification).
I organized the documents by class (category).
This work falls into the class of masterpieces.
高級レストランで食事した。
We dined at a high-class restaurant.
His behavior has class.