Difference of 辞典, 事典 and 字典 (jiten)

We all know that these three words are all read as Jiten. But they are actually a different word for a different type of book. Check it out below~

To analyze the difference between homonym in Japanese, we could easily analyze them based on the kanji they used. Usually, they will have different kanji.

In 辞典, the kanji used is 辞 which means terms/expressions. This is the word for the standard language dictionary such as the Japanese – English dictionary.

In 字典, the kanji used is 字 which means characters. It also refers to 漢字 (kanji). Therefore it means a dictionary which holds in-depth information about Japanese characters.

While in 事典, the kanji used is 事 which means things/facts. It’s a book that holds information about facts. In another language, this is a word for an encyclopedia.

Hope it helps! ｡ﾟ✶ฺ.ヽ(*´∀`*)ﾉ.✶ฺﾟ｡