委員会（いいんかい、iいnkaい）
- committee

The Japanese word 委員会 いいんかい refers to a "committee," "commission," or "board." It's a group of people appointed for a specific function, typically within an organization or institution. This group is responsible for making decisions, conducting investigations, or performing specific tasks.

⚫︎学校の委員会 Translation: School committee ⚫︎選挙管理委員会 Translation: Election commission ⚫︎プロジェクトの委員会 Translation: Project committee

You can use 委員会 in various situations to describe groups formed for specific purposes. ⚫︎When discussing organizational structures, like a school's student council. ⚫︎When referring to bodies that oversee elections or manage resources. ⚫︎When talking about specific project groups.

⚫︎The word 委員会 is typically written with the kanji 委員会. ⚫︎The reading is いいんかい in hiragana. ⚫︎There are no significant variations in okurigana.

⚫︎会議 (かいぎ) - meeting ⚫︎グループ (ぐーるぷ) - group ⚫︎部会 (ぶかい) - section, sub-committee

There isn't a direct antonym. However, the concept of "no committee" or "absence of a committee" could be considered an opposite idea.

学校の委員会は、生徒の意見を聞いて学校規則を改正しました。 ・Translation: The school committee listened to the students' opinions and revised the school rules. ・Explanation: This sentence describes the action of a school 委員会 making changes based on input from the students.

この問題について調査する委員会が設置されました。 ・Translation: A committee was established to investigate this issue. ・Explanation: This sentence explains the formation of a 委員会 for investigative purposes.

The word 委員会 is a combination of two kanji: 委員 (いん - "member" or "commissioner") and 会 (かい - "meeting" or "association"). Therefore, it literally means "meeting of members" or "commission members' meeting," precisely reflecting its function as a collective body of individuals.