母艦

Japanese

Kanji in this term
母	艦

Etymology

Wasei kango: a Japanese coinage based on Chinese. First found during the Meiji Period, later borrowed into Chinese.

Compound of 母 (bo, “mother”) +‎ 艦 (kan, “warship”). Calque of English mother ship.

Pronunciation

• On'yomi
• IPA: /bokaɴ/, [bo̞kã̠ɴ]

Noun

母艦 (hiragana ぼかん, romaji bokan)

1. a mother ship (specifically a water craft)
2. short for 航空母艦 (kōkū bokan, “aircraft carrier”)

Derived terms

• 航空母艦 (こうくうぼかん, kōkū bokan): an aircraft carrier

References

• 聯合艦隊出征報告 (Rengō Kantai Shussei Hōkoku [Report on Combined Fleet Campaigns]), 大本營海軍參謀部 (Dai Hon'ei Kaigun Sanbō-bu: Imperial HQ, Navy Staff Section), Tōkyō, 1894, page 183[1] (in Japanese). Retrieved 2012-06-22.

  "本隊ノ六隻第二遊撃隊ノ六隻本隊附属八重山、天城ノ二艦（磐城ハ本隊ト行違ニ淺水XXニ赴ケルモノ、如シ近江丸ハ本日佐世保ヨリ到着ノ見込）外ニ第一遊撃隊ノ秋津洲、水雷艇隊ノ母艦山城丸" (XX = illegible character)

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Mandarin

simpl.		母舰
trad.		母艦

Noun

母艦 (traditional, Pinyin mǔjiàn, simplified 母舰)

1. mother ship

Synonyms

• mǔchuán 母船

Derived terms

• hángkōngmǔjiàn 航空母艦