首都

1. Origins, structure, and basic meaning

• Structure: 首都 (しゅと) is a noun for a capital city, the central city where a country's government is based.
• Basic usage: It is used for locating a country's capital or finding national capitals on a map.
  • その国の首都は大きな川のそばにある。 — The country's capital lies beside a large river.
  • 各国の首都を地図で探す課題が出た。 — We were assigned to find each nation's capital on a map.

2. Common pitfalls and similar expressions

• Country and capital
  • 首都 is not just any city; it identifies a country's political center. The country can precede it with の, as in 国の首都.