(typography, printing) a block of multiple characters arranged in a space equivalent to that of a single character (an imaginary square), usually containing katakana, used to save space

(historical) a special police force organized by the shogunate during the Bakumatsu period

Synonym of 文官 (bunkan, “civilian”)

Synonym of 武官 (bukan, “military officer”)

(history) the Shinchōgumi (samurai guards of the Edo Shogunate)