Japanese word

分業

Pronunciation

Romajibungyō

Meaning

  • noundivision of labor

Example

私たちは分業して製品を作ります。watashi ta chi wa bun gyō shi te sei hin o tsuku ri ma su

We make products by dividing up the work.

Illustration for 分業 (division of labor)

More examples

国際分業によって、製品を安く作れるようになりました。koku sai bun gyō ni yo tte sei hin o yasu ku tsuku re ru yō ni na ri ma shi ta

The international division of labor has made it possible to produce goods more cheaply.

Core concept

Shows a whole piece of work becoming a collective effort by assigning its separate parts to different workers.

Common phrases

  • 分業体制bun gyō tai sei

    division-of-labor system

  • 分業を進めるbun gyō o susu me ru

    promote division of labor

  • 国際分業koku sai bun gyō

    international division of labor

Similar words

分担buntan: The sharing of a larger task among several people or groups.
分掌bunshō: The formal assignment of different duties to separate people or departments.

Definition in Japanese

複数の人が一つの仕事を役割ごとに分担し、各自の担当部分を行うこと。fuku sū no hito ga hito tsu no shi goto o yaku wari go to ni bun tan shi kaku ji no tan tō bu bun o okona u ko to

Word origin

分業 (bungyō) combines 分 (bun, "divide" or "part") with 業 (gyō, "work"), expressing the idea of dividing work among people.

Usage tips

  • In formal Japanese, 分業 (bungyō) can describe both workplace organization and the broader economic system in which people or groups specialize in different kinds of work.

Other meanings

  • specializationnoun

Related words

  • 分業化bungyōkaspecializationnoun

Word lists with this word