noun
strut; short vertical post
A short vertical structural member, such as a stud in a wall or a post in a railing.
階段の手すりの束が壊れている。
The short post of the stair railing is broken.
noun
thickness (of a book minus the cover, a sheaf of paper, etc.)
Refers to the thickness of a stack of paper or the body of a book excluding the covers. Often used in printing and bookbinding contexts.
この本は束が3センチある。
This book has a thickness of 3 centimeters.
noun
handbreadth; bundle
Archaic unit of length roughly equal to the width of four fingers, or a bundle of something. Now mostly replaced by 束 (そく) for bundles.
See also: 束 (そく) · 束 (そく) · 束 (そく)
古文書には、矢の長さを「束」で表した例がある。
In old documents, there are examples where the length of arrows is expressed in 'tsuka'.
たば is the common reading for a bundle of long, thin items (e.g., 花束 = bouquet). つか is not used in this sense.
The reading つか is native Japanese. The kanji 束 is used for its meaning of 'bundle' or 'bind', which extended to structural posts and thickness measurements. The archaic handbreadth unit likely derives from the width of a bundle of fingers.