虚構

1. Origins, structure, and basic meaning

• Structure: 虚構 joins 虚, indicating unreality, with 構, something constructed, and is read きょこう.
• Basic usage: It can denote fiction in a narrative or a fabricated element presented as fact.

2. Common pitfalls and similar expressions

• Fiction contrasted with fact
  • In 史実と虚構, the word contrasts historical fact with invented narrative material.
• Fabrication in a claim
  • In 証言の一部が虚構だ, it identifies part of testimony as fabricated, so the sense is stronger than neutral literary fiction.