百科事典

1. Origins, structure, and basic meaning

• Structure: 百科事典 is a noun read ひゃっかじてん, referring to an encyclopedia that systematically explains topics across many fields.
• Basic usage: It can be the reference source used to look up an unfamiliar person or the subject whose contents, such as illustrations in an old edition, are described.
  • 分からない人物名を百科事典で調べた。 describes looking up an unfamiliar person's name in an encyclopedia; 古い百科事典には美しい挿絵が多い。 says that an old encyclopedia contains many beautiful illustrations.

2. Common pitfalls and similar expressions

• 百科事典で調べた
  • で marks the encyclopedia as the means or reference source used for the search, not merely the location where it occurred.
• 百科事典には
  • には presents the old encyclopedia as the scope and topic, emphasizing the many illustrations found in it.
• 百科事典 and 辞書
  • 辞書 mainly provides meanings, readings, and usage for words, while 百科事典 explains people, objects, and other subjects across many fields.