noun, noun, used as a suffix
Honorific term for someone else's wife, or used as a suffix after a surname to mean 'Mrs'. Not used for one's own wife.
田中夫人はとても親切な方です。
Mrs. Tanaka is a very kind person.
社長夫人がパーティーに出席された。
The company president's wife attended the party.
noun
wife of a nobleman
Archaic use referring specifically to the wife of a nobleman.
古文書には、その貴族の夫人についての記述がある。
In the ancient documents, there is a description of that nobleman's wife.
noun
imperial consort of the third rank
Only with reading ぶにん
Archaic term from the ritsuryō system for a consort of the emperor of the third rank. Also read ぶにん.
律令制では、夫人は天皇の后妃の一つであった。
Under the ritsuryō system, 夫人 (ぶにん) was one of the ranks of imperial consorts.