noun
The basic meaning is a container with sides, such as a box, case, chest, package, pack, or crate. Used for both everyday small boxes and larger containers.
靴を箱に入れてしまった。
I put the shoes away in a box.
玄関に大きな箱が届いている。
A large box has arrived at the entrance.
noun
train car; railway car
A specialized extension referring to a car or carriage of a train or similar vehicle. In ordinary everyday speech, 車両 is the safer standard word.
鉄道の現場では、一両の車両を「箱」と呼ぶことがある。
In railway work, a single car may be called a hako.
noun
shamisen case; shamisen
A limited traditional-entertainment use: 箱 can refer to a shamisen case, and by extension to the shamisen itself. This is not the normal everyday word for a shamisen.
花柳界では、三味線やそのケースを「箱」と呼ぶことがある。
In the geisha entertainment world, a shamisen or its case may be called a hako.
noun
public building; community building
Colloquial and often written ハコ. Commonly has a slightly critical nuance when talking about public or community buildings as physical facilities, especially costly construction projects.
See also: 箱物
新しいハコを建てるより、今ある施設を活用したい。
Rather than building a new public facility, we want to make use of the facilities we already have.
あの町は立派なハコばかり作っている。
That town keeps building impressive public facilities and little else.
noun
man who carried a geisha's shamisen
Archaic geisha-district usage for a man whose job was to carry a geisha's shamisen. The related word 箱屋 names this occupation more explicitly.
See also: 箱屋
古い花柳界の記録では、芸者の三味線を運ぶ男を「箱」と呼ぶことがある。
In old records of the geisha world, a man who carried a geisha's shamisen may be called a hako.
noun
waste receptacle; feces
Archaic use referring either to a receptacle for human waste or to feces itself. This is not a normal modern everyday use of 箱.
古い文献では、「箱」が便器や糞便を指すことがある。
In old texts, hako can refer to a toilet receptacle or to feces.
suffix, counter
counter for boxes; counter for boxed items
Used after numbers as a suffix or counter for boxes or quantities packaged in boxes.
みかんを三箱注文した。
I ordered three boxes of mandarin oranges.
薬を一箱買っておいた。
I bought one box of medicine in advance.
Rare kanji form; mainly useful for older, literary, proper-name, or lookup purposes.
Rare kanji form; generally not the normal modern spelling.
Rare kanji form; generally not the normal modern spelling.
Rare kanji form; generally not the normal modern spelling.
Rare kanji form; generally not the normal modern spelling.
Often overlaps with 箱 as 'case,' but ケース is a loanword commonly used for fitted, protective, or specialized cases such as phone cases and instrument cases.
Refers to public buildings or large facilities, often with a critical nuance about construction projects; it is closely related to the colloquial ハコ sense.
The standard word for a railway car or vehicle; 箱 in this sense is more specialized or insider-like.
The normal word for the instrument itself; 箱 for a shamisen or its case is a limited traditional-entertainment usage.
はこ is a native Japanese word. The kanji 箱 is the standard conventional spelling for a box or container; the other kanji forms are rare variants. The precise historical derivation of the native word is uncertain.