高校

Pattern visualization

Examples

1. 高校三年生です。▶ —
   I'm a third-year high schooler.
2. 高校を卒業しました。▶ —
   I graduated from high school.

Collocations

Mnemonic

高校 koukou — abbreviation of 高等学校 (koutou gakkou, senior high school). Japan's school system runs 6+3+3+4: 小学校 (6 yrs), 中学校 (3 yrs), 高校 (3 yrs), 大学 (4 yrs). Only elementary and middle are mandatory; high-school enrollment is ~99% but technically optional. Youth-culture vocabulary clusters here: 高校野球 (high-school baseball at Koshien stadium), 高校時代 (high-school days). Structure mirrors Korea's 6+3+3+4 so mapping is intuitive. Daily life favours the abbreviation; the full 高等学校 reads as formal/news register.

Quick check

1. Full name of 高校 and its place in the Japanese school system?

   • 高等学校 — 3 years after 中学校, not compulsory
   • 高級学校 — elite-only
   • 高速学校 — accelerated
   • 高山学校 — mountain school