Difference between kagaku and gaku?

[AitorIglesias]

Hi, I would like to know the difference between Gaku (学) and Kagaku (化学). I think they both mean science, are they synonyms or do they have different meanings?

 

[Toritoribe]

化学/Kagaku means "chemistry", not science. 学/Gaku has lots of meanings; study, science, learning, knowledge, etc..

 

[AitorIglesias]

Yes that's right, I got confused, I meant to say Kagaku (科学) which means science. I know Gaku (学) has many meanings, but one of them means science. But I think each one is used in a different context and I would like to understand it better.

 

[Toritoribe]

Ah, I see. While 科学 is "science" as a common noun, 学 means "science" as a suffix (e.g. 歴史学: "historical science", 医学 "medical science"). Thus, it's closer to "-ology" or "-ics" in English. 学 doesn't mean "science" as a single kanji.

 

[AitorIglesias]

Oh, I see. And all the meanings that 学 has (study, science, learning, knowledge, etc) can only be used as a suffix or is there any particular case in which only the kanji 学 can be used as a complete word?

 

[Toritoribe]

It's the latter. As in the examples in the dictionary, 学 can mean study, learning, knowledge or education.

がく【学】 の解説
１ 学ぶこと。学問。「―にいそしむ」
２ 学識。知識。「―がある」

学（がく）の意味・使い方をわかりやすく解説 - goo国語辞書

学（がく）とは。意味や使い方、類語をわかりやすく解説。１ 学ぶこと。学問。「―にいそしむ」２ 学識。知識。「―がある」 - goo国語辞書は30万8千件語以上を収録。政治・経済・医学・ITなど、最新用語の追加も定期的に行っています。

dictionary.goo.ne.jp

 

[AitorIglesias]

I understand, thank you very much, it has been very helpful.

 

[mdchachi]

And you can add another suffix to this usually-suffix word
学 + 部