Sections and departments with 部
部 represents a division of a whole into several parts, or a group such as an organization or field.
Etymology
This kanji is a phono-semantic compound comprised of 邑 / 阝 (place, settlement) as the semantic component and 咅 as the phonetic component, giving the on-reading ブ.
Organization Structure
本部 (Headquarters)
本部 means the headquarters or central governing office of an organization.
It combines 本 (main) with 部 (department) to show the main department.
Akari encounters Woody while he’s out on a delivery run. He stopped to show off for some kids, but in the process, he seems to have lost his city map, and he has a terrible sense of direction. Akari asks if he has the delivery addresses, which he says he does.
- ウッディー:
- 「でも 本部まで地図を取りに戻る時間がないのだぁ！」
- “But I don't have time to go back to headquarters to get a map!!”
Organizational Roles
部下 (Subordinate)
部下 means a subordinate, someone who works under a superior in an organization or chain of command.
It combines 部 (section) with 下 (lower) to show someone lower in position.
Cocoa thinks Rize is nervous about staying overnight with her and Chino.
- リゼ:
- 「いや… 親父の部下に誘われたワイルドなキャンプしか経験した事ないから…」
- “Well... I've only had the experience of those wild camping trips my dad's subordinates invited me on...”
- 「こんなの初めてで…」
- “I've never done anything like this before...”
- “Well... I've only had the experience of those wild camping trips my dad's subordinates invited me on...”
- ココア:
- 「ワイルド？」
- “Wild?”
Parts of a Whole
全部 (Whole)
全部 means everything or the whole, with nothing left out.
It combines 全 (whole) with 部 (parts) to show all the parts together.
Cocoa encounters Syaro standing outside.
- ココア:
- 「今日はチラシ配り？」
- “You're handing out fliers today?”
- シャロ:
- 「全部配り終えるまで帰れないわ」
- “I can't go home until I finish handing out all of them.”
一部 (Part)
一部 means one part, a portion, or some members of a larger whole.
It combines 一 (one) with 部 (section) to show one part of the whole.
Masaki’s dream job making coffee turns out to be nothing like he expected, as he’s put to work sorting out good beans from bad. When he finally has the chance to roast beans, he’s eager to use the fancy roasting machine, but he’s instead given a handheld coffee roaster to hold over a portable stove’s flame.
- エゾリスＡ:
- 「ほらほら ちゃんと揺すらないと〜」
- “Come on, come on. You have to shake it properly.”
- エゾリスＢ:
- 「一部だけ焦げちゃうわよ〜」
- “Parts of it might get burnt.”
- マサキ:
- 「うるさいなあ」
- “Hush up!”
School Clubs
部活 (Club activities)
部活, short for 部活動, means a school club activity. It includes sports and cultural clubs that meet outside class.
It combines 部 (club) with 活 (activity) to show the activities of a club.
Aru returns to her classroom after club. Expecting the classroom to be empty, she’s singing a song about herself as she enters the room. There, she finds her friends idling away the time.
- アル:
- 「なな 何で皆いんのよ！（誰もいないと思ってた！）」
- “Wh- why is it that you all are here?! (I was thinking no one was here!)”
- なこ:
- 「（なんだ今の歌…）」
- “(What was with that song just now...)”
- ソトカ:
- 「師匠がアルを待つって」
- “Master said she'd wait for you.”
- アル:
- 「でも私部活あるわよ」
- “But I'm in a club!”
入部 (Joining a club)
入部 means joining a school club or sports team.
It combines 入 (enter) with 部 (club) to show entering a club.
Sakurako forces Takeru to join the shogi club. When he suggests she join as well, she refuses and tells him not to go either, or else he’ll be in the way there.
- タケル:
- 「乗り気じゃなかったが入部した以上はしっかり活動する！」
- “I wasn't enthusiastic, but now that I'm in the club, I'll work hard!”
- 「それが男ってもんだ！！」
- “That's what it means to be a man!!”
- “I wasn't enthusiastic, but now that I'm in the club, I'll work hard!”
Spaces and Sections
部屋 (Room)
部屋 means a room separated from other spaces in a building.
It combines 部 (section) with 屋 (room) to show a sectioned-off room within a larger building.
Hiro lets Mao move into his sister’s bedroom, as Hina is living with relatives. After, he comes up with a list of rules that Mao needs to follow if she’s to keep living there.
- 基:
- 「…さて 片付け…」
- “Now then, cleaning...”
- 「できるのかな おまえ…」
- “I wonder if you can do it.”
- 「俺 陽菜の部屋相当キレイにしてたんだぞ」
- “I kept Hina's room pretty clean, you know.”
- “Now then, cleaning...”
