少女

1. Origins, structure, and basic meaning

• Structure: 少女 is read しょうじょ and means a young girl.
• Basic usage: It is used for a girl waiting for her mother at a station or crossing the sea as a character in a story.

2. Common pitfalls and similar expressions

• Register compared with 女の子
  • 女の子(おんなのこ) is an everyday expression for a girl. 少女 is a comparatively literary term in written portrayals and narratives.