高校（こうこう、kouこう）
- high school

The Japanese word 高校, pronounced こうこう (kōkō), refers to "high school" or "secondary school" in English. It's the stage of education that typically follows junior high school (中学校, ちゅうがっこう, chūgakkō) and precedes university (大学, だいがく, daigaku) or other forms of higher education. High school generally covers grades 10 through 12.

⚫︎ 私は高校生です。 Translation: I am a high school student. ⚫︎ 高校の友達と映画を見に行きました。 Translation: I went to see a movie with my high school friends. ⚫︎ 彼は高校を卒業しました。 Translation: He graduated from high school.

You use 高校 when discussing secondary education, high school students, high school events, or anything related to the high school experience. It’s a very common word, used in everyday conversation, news reports, and written materials.

The word 高校 is primarily written with the kanji 高校. The reading こうこう is usually written in hiragana. It is rarely written in katakana. There are no variations in okurigana for this word.

There are no direct synonyms for 高校 that are used in the same context. However, depending on context, you might refer to: ⚫︎ 学校 (がっこう, gakkō): school (general term) ⚫︎ 高等学校 (こうとうがっこう, kōtōgakkō): Another, slightly more formal way to say high school, but it’s essentially the same.

⚫︎ 小学校 (しょうがっこう, shōgakkō): elementary school ⚫︎ 中学校 (ちゅうがっこう, chūgakkō): junior high school ⚫︎ 大学 (だいがく, daigaku): university/college

私の姉は、今年高校に入学しました。 ・Translation: My older sister entered high school this year. ・Explanation: This sentence describes the act of enrolling in high school.

あの店は、高校生の割引があります。 ・Translation: That store has a discount for high school students. ・Explanation: This sentence explains that a store offers discounts for high school students.

The kanji 高 (kō/taka - tall, high) and 校 (kō - school) combine to literally mean "high school". Therefore, the etymology of 高校 simply comes from the words' semantic meanings.