作詞（さくし、sakushi）
- lyrics

The Japanese word 作詞 (さくし, sakushi) means "lyric writing" or "songwriting." It refers to the act or the profession of writing the lyrics for a song. It encompasses creating the words that go along with the melody and music. The person who writes the lyrics is called a 作詞家 (さくしか, sakushika), which translates to "lyricist" or "songwriter."

⚫︎ あの歌手の《作詞は、いつも心に響きます。》 Translation: The lyrics of that singer always resonate with me. ⚫︎ 彼女は新しい曲の《作詞を始めた。》 Translation: She started writing the lyrics for a new song. ⚫︎ この曲の《作詞者は誰ですか？》 Translation: Who is the lyricist for this song?

You use 作詞 in contexts related to songs and music. It's common when discussing the lyrics of a song, the process of writing lyrics, or the people involved in creating lyrics. You might use it when talking about your favorite songs, music composition, or the role of a lyricist.

作詞 is typically written in kanji as 作詞 and read as さくし in hiragana. There are no other common ways to write this word. The okurigana is fixed.

⚫︎ 作歌 (さっか, sakka) - This word is less common, but it's another term for lyric writing or composing songs. ⚫︎ 歌詞 (かし, kashi) - While not a direct synonym, 歌詞 means "lyrics," and is closely related to the concept of 作詞.

There are no direct antonyms for 作詞 because it's an action, not a state. However, if you consider the opposite of creating lyrics, you might consider words related to the music composition itself, or words related to singing without writing lyrics, such as: ⚫︎ 作曲 (さっきょく, sakkyoku) - composing music. ⚫︎ 歌う (うたう, utau) - to sing.

彼は有名なアニメの主題歌の《作詞を手がけた。》 ・Translation: He was in charge of writing the lyrics for a famous anime's theme song. ・Explanation: This sentence describes someone's involvement in 作詞 for a well-known song.

私はいつか、自分の書いた《作詞で歌ってほしい。》 ・Translation: I hope someone will sing with lyrics I wrote someday. ・Explanation: This sentence expresses a desire to have one's lyrics performed in a song.

The word 作詞 is a compound word. 作 (sa(ku)) means "to make," "to create," or "to write." 詞 (shi) means "lyrics," "words," or "poetry." Therefore, 作詞 literally means "to make lyrics" or "to write lyrics."