県 (Ken) is a Japanese noun meaning “prefecture (of Japan), county (of China, Taiwan, Norway, etc.), department (of France), province (of Italy, Spain, etc.)”.
Meanings
- noun, noun suffixprefecture (of Japan); county (of China, Taiwan, Norway, etc.); department (of France); province (of Italy, Spain, etc.)
Examples
日本には４３県があります。
There are 43 prefectures in Japan.
日本には、県がいくつありますか。
How many prefectures are there in Japan?
台風の被害は数県にまたがっていた。
The damage of the typhoon spread over several prefectures.
Sentences from Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR).