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Quintuple VS

Synonym Boundary: "働きます", "しごと", "仕事する", "作品", "齷齪"

All represent the core concept "work", but require precise selection.

Japanese Option A

働きます

はたらきます (hatarakimasu)
N5 / CEFR
Japanese Option B

しごと

しごと (shigoto)
N5 / CEFR
Japanese Option C

仕事する

しごと する (shigoto suru)
N4 / CEFR
Japanese Option D

作品

さくひん (sakuhin)
N3 / CEFR
Japanese Option E

齷齪

あくせく
C2PLUS / CEFR

Quintuple VS Nuance Contrast & Social Differences

When expressing "work" in Japanese, you must carefully distinguish between "働きます", "しごと", "仕事する", "作品", "齷齪" based on context.
  • 働きます (はたらきます (hatarakimasu) - Level: N5): Maps to "to work" and is used when Polite form of 働く.
  • しごと (しごと (shigoto) - Level: N5): Maps to "work, job" and is used when Refers to employment or tasks. To work is 働きます.
  • 仕事する (しごと する (shigoto suru) - Level: N4): Maps to "to work; to do work" and is used when A very common verb used for performing a job or task, often implying employment. It combines the noun '仕事'.
  • 作品 (さくひん (sakuhin) - Level: N3): Maps to "work (of art, literature, etc.), creation" and is used when Refers to something created by an artist, writer, musician, craftsman, etc., such as a painting, novel, film, or piece of music. It carries a sense of artistic or creative merit..
  • 齷齪 (あくせく - Level: C2PLUS): Maps to "to work restlessly; to fuss over details" and is used when Essential structural term in CEFR C2PLUS vocabulary syllabus..
Mixing these up can easily lead to unnatural translations. Refer to the bilingual context cards below to master the boundaries!
Context for "働きます"
私は毎日8時間働きます。
I work 8 hours every day.
Context for "しごと"
彼は新しい仕事を探しています。
He is looking for a new job.
Context for "仕事する"
私は毎日会社で仕事をします。
I work at the company every day.
Context for "作品"
この美術館には有名な画家の作品がたくさんあります。
This museum has many works by famous painters.
Context for "齷齪"
毎日、日本語を練習するために齷齪。
Every day, I work restlessly; to fuss over details to practice Japanese.

Synonym Mastery Challenge

Which Japanese word perfectly fits this blank space?

Fill in the blank: "私は毎日8時間 ___ 。" (Meaning: "I work 8 hours every day.")
🎉 Correct Answer!

Remember: "働きます" is correct here because it represents "to work" in the context: "I work 8 hours every day.".

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