～式

～しき · ～shiki · JLPT N4 · noun

ceremony

🎓 式 (shiki) = set form: a formal rite (卒業式) or a fixed style (日本式)

式 means a fixed form or pattern. Attached to a noun, it names either a formal event that follows a set procedure (結婚式 wedding, 入学式 entrance ceremony) or a way of doing things (洋式 Western-style, 和式 Japanese-style). Same root idea: a prescribed form.

式 — 工 (work) + 弋 (phonetic)
式 is a phono-semantic compound: 工 ('work, craft') gives the meaning of a tool, rule, or method, while 弋 supplies the sound. It originally referred to a standard pattern or model used in craftsmanship, then broadened to mean 'style, form, ceremony, or formula.'

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