主義（しゅぎ、shugi）
- doctrine/principle

The Japanese word 主義, read as しゅぎ, primarily translates to "ism," "principle," "doctrine," "ideology," or "policy" in English. It represents a set of beliefs, principles, or doctrines that form the basis of a philosophy, political system, or way of thinking. It can also refer to a specific school of thought or a particular approach to a subject. 主義 is often used to describe established systems of belief or guiding principles.

⚫︎資本主義 Translation: Capitalism ⚫︎社会主義 Translation: Socialism ⚫︎民主主義 Translation: Democracy

⚫︎You'll often encounter 主義 in discussions about politics, economics, philosophy, and social issues. ⚫︎It's used to identify and describe the core tenets of various systems or beliefs. ⚫︎It can be used to refer to the guiding principles of an individual or group. For instance, someone might say they believe in a certain 主義. ⚫︎主義 is often combined with other words to create compound words.

⚫︎The word is written in kanji as 主義. ⚫︎The reading is しゅぎ in hiragana. ⚫︎There are no variations in okurigana. ⚫︎It is almost never written in katakana.

⚫︎思想（しそう） - thought, idea, ideology ⚫︎理念（りねん） - ideal, principle ⚫︎信条（しんじょう） - belief, creed ⚫︎方針（ほうしん） - policy, direction

While there isn't a direct antonym for 主義, words that suggest a lack of adherence to a specific belief system could be considered opposites. These include: ⚫︎無主義（むしゅぎ） - non-ism; absence of ideology or principles ⚫︎多様性（たようせい） - diversity

彼は自由主義主義に基づいた政策を支持している。 ・Translation: He supports policies based on liberalism. ・Explanation: This sentence illustrates how 自由主義（liberalism） is modified by 主義 to indicate the underlying ideology or principle.

その会社は顧客第一主義を掲げている。 ・Translation: That company upholds the principle of putting customers first. ・Explanation: This shows how 主義 can be used to describe a company's guiding principle or policy.

The word 主義 is derived from Chinese. The first character, 主 (しゅ), means "main," "principal," or "master," and the second character, 義 (ぎ), means "righteousness," "justice," or "meaning." Together, they combine to suggest a "principal meaning" or a core belief system.