署 means “public office, signature”

しょ · sho

Also: govt office, police station

On'yomi (Chinese reading)

ショ

JLPT N2 · Taught in grade 6 · 13 strokes

The story

A net (罒) cast over people (者): picture each officer assigned a post somewhere in the web. 署 is a station, like the 警察署 or the 消防署, and 署名 is a signature, your name put exactly where it belongs.

Used in 警察署 (keisatsusho, police station), 消防署 (shoubousho, fire station), and 署名 (shomei, signature)

More from Halls of Government

• 則 rule
• 庁 government agency
• 令 order
• 律 law
• 臣 minister
• 党 party
• 協 cooperation
• 総 total
• 領 territory
• 府 government office
• 委 committee
• 団 group

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Readings from KANJIDIC2, © EDRDG, CC BY-SA.