クラス
kurasu[kɯ̟ɾa̠sɨ]
The English phrase school class is expressed in Japanese as クラス (kurasu).
クラス refers to a specific group of students taught together. In a Japanese school context, it is important to distinguish between the group of people and the instruction itself. While クラス refers to the student group, the word 授業 (jugyō) is used to refer to the actual lesson or period of instruction.
What does it mean word for word?
クラス is a loanword from the English word 'class', written in the Katakana script.
Which one should you use?
Additionally, the formal term 学級 (gakkyū) can be used to express 'school class' when referring to the class as a whole, including both the students and the teacher.
How do you pronounce it?
kurasu
Did you know?
- Members of a クラス are expected to maintain their own learning environment through sōji, a daily ritual where students collectively clean the floors and boards.
- In Japanese schools, the クラス often functions as a tight-knit social unit because students typically stay in one room all day while teachers rotate between them.
- While クラス describes the group, the word 組 (kumi) is the specific counter used when identifying which particular section of a grade a student belongs to.
Examples in context
- 本当の恐怖－ある朝目を覚まして高校の自分のクラスが国を動かしていると気付くこと。True terror is to wake up one morning and discover that your high school class is running the country.This sentence uses クラス to describe a high school class that has gained significant power.Tatoeba #1700858 by mookeee, translation #1700792 by Scott
- Watashi no kurasu wa kyūgatsu kara eigo o benkyō shimasu. (私のクラスは９月から英語を勉強します。)My class will study English from September.
- Ashita no jugyō de nani o benkyō suru no? (明日の授業で何を勉強するの？)What are we studying in tomorrow's class?
- 私のクラスは三十人です。Watashi no kurasu wa sanjuunin desu.My class has thirty students.
- 新しいクラスのメンバーを紹介します。Atarashii kurasu no menbaa o shoukai shimasu.I will introduce the members of the new class.
Example conversation
Two students are talking about their new school year.
- 美咲 Misaki蓮くん、新しいクラスは楽しい？Ren-kun, atarashii kurasu wa tanoshii?Ren, is your new class fun?
- 蓮 Renうん、クラスの人はみんな優しいよ。Un, kurasu no hito wa minna yasashii yo.Yeah, the people in my class are all kind.
- 美咲 Misakiそれは良かったね。Sore wa yokatta ne.That's good to hear.
- 蓮 Ren美咲のクラスはどう？Misaki no kurasu wa dou?How is your class, Misaki?
Sources
- Pronunciation: Wiktionary entry クラス, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
