審問

1. Origins, structure, and basic meaning

• Structure: 審問 (しんもん) is a noun that also forms a する verb for interrogation or a formal inquiry through questioning.
• Basic usage: It describes a legislature questioning a minister or a witness answering throughout a long inquiry.
  • 劇では議会が大臣への審問を始める。 — In the drama, the legislature begins a formal inquiry into the minister.
  • 証人は長い審問の間も落ち着いて答えた。 — The witness answered calmly throughout the long questioning.

2. Common pitfalls and similar expressions

• Formal questioning procedure
  • 審問 focuses on an official questioning process used by an authority to establish facts, making it weightier than an everyday 質問.