旅団
ryodan[ɾʲo̞dã̠ɴ]
The English phrase 'brigade' translates to Japanese as 旅団 (ryodan).
The term 旅団 is used to refer to a brigade in a military or organizational sense. Other related terms include 部隊, which describes a military brigade or unit and 隊, which can denote a brigade or a team.
Meaning: military unit (noun)
How do you pronounce it?
ryodan
Did you know?
- Historically, the word 旅 referred to a traveling military group that carried its own supplies, distinguishing it from stationary garrisons.
- The character 団 in 旅団 also appears in 団地, which refers to a large public housing complex.
- Unlike English, where 'brigade' can be used metaphorically for a group of people (like a 'cleaning brigade'), 旅団 is almost exclusively reserved for formal military or official contexts.
Examples in context
- 歩兵旅団 (ほへいりょだん, hohei ryodan)infantry brigade
- 消防隊 (しょうぼうたい, shobo tai)fire brigade
- ファン軍団 (ふぁんぐんだん, fan gundan)fan brigade
- スポーツ隊 (すぽーつたい, supootsu tai)sports brigade
- 医療部隊 (いりょうぶたい, iryo butai)Medical brigade
- 彼は旅団の司令官だ。Kare wa ryodan no shireikan da.He is the brigade commander.
- その旅団は非常に強力だ。Sono ryodan wa hijō ni kyōryoku da.That brigade is very powerful.
- 旅団の規模は大きい。Ryodan no kibo wa ookii.The size of the brigade is large.
Example conversation
Two friends are discussing a historical novel.
- 蓮 Renこの物語には、どんな旅団が登場するの？Kono monogatari ni wa, donna ryodan ga tōjō suru no?What kind of brigade appears in this story?
- 美咲 Misakiとても勇敢な旅団が出てくるよ。Totemo yūkan na ryodan ga detekuru yo.A very brave brigade appears.
- 蓮 Ren美咲は、その旅団が好きなの？Misaki wa, sono ryodan ga suki na no?Misaki, do you like that brigade?
- 美咲 Misakiうん、とてもかっこいいと思う。Un, totemo kakkoii to omou.Yes, I think they are very cool.
Sources
- Wiktionary, “brigade” translations and entries 旅団, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
