鑑識
かんしき
noun, suru-verb
forensics; expert appraisal; the eye for judging quality
Conjugation
| Affirmative | Negative | |
|---|---|---|
| Present | 鑑識する | 鑑識しない |
| Present polite | 鑑識します | 鑑識しません |
| Past | 鑑識した | 鑑識しなかった |
| Past polite | 鑑識しました | 鑑識しませんでした |
| て form | 鑑識して | 鑑識しなくて |
| ている present | 鑑識している | 鑑識していない |
| ている polite | 鑑識しています | 鑑識していません |
| ている past | 鑑識していた | 鑑識していなかった |
| ている past polite | 鑑識していました | 鑑識していませんでした |
| Conditional ば | 鑑識すれば | 鑑識しなければ |
| Conditional たら | 鑑識したら | 鑑識しなかったら |
| Volitional | 鑑識しよう | — |
| Volitional polite | 鑑識しましょう | — |
| Potential | 鑑識できる | 鑑識できない |
| Passive | 鑑識される | 鑑識されない |
| Causative | 鑑識させる | 鑑識させない |
| Imperative | 鑑識しろ | 鑑識するな |
1.
forensic investigation; crime scene examination; the forensics team
The technical, scientific examination of physical evidence by police — fingerprints, blood, hair, footprints — to identify suspects or reconstruct events. By extension, refers to the police forensics unit itself, often mentioned in news reports and crime dramas.
警察の鑑識が現場を調べた。
Police forensics examined the scene.
鑑識結果から犯人が特定された。
The suspect was identified based on the forensic results.
現場に残された指紋を鑑識課が詳しく調べているところだ。
The forensics division is currently examining the fingerprints left at the scene in detail.
2.
expert appraisal; connoisseurship; an eye for quality
The trained ability to judge the authenticity, value, or quality of art, antiques, gems, or other items. Also refers to a person's discerning eye — the capacity to distinguish what is genuine or excellent from what is not.
彼は絵の鑑識眼がある。
He has an eye for paintings.
骨董品の鑑識には長年の経験が必要だ。
Appraising antiques requires years of experience.
専門家に鑑識してもらったところ、その掛け軸は江戸時代の真作だと判明した。
When we had a specialist appraise it, the hanging scroll turned out to be a genuine Edo-period work.
Composed of 鑑 ('to scrutinize, judge') + 識 ('to discern, recognize'). The combination conveys the act of careful, knowledgeable examination — whether of physical evidence by police or of artworks by experts.
USAGE:
- Sense 1 (forensics) is the most common modern usage and a staple of crime news and detective fiction. 鑑識課 ('forensics division') and 鑑識班 ('forensics team') refer to specific police units.
- Sense 2 (connoisseurship) often appears with 眼: 鑑識眼 ('an eye for / discerning eye'). This compound is itself an established noun.
- The verb form 鑑識する is used for both senses: examining evidence forensically, and appraising an artwork or antique.
COMMON COLLOCATIONS:
- 鑑識課: the forensics division
- 鑑識班: the forensics team
- 鑑識眼: discerning eye; connoisseur's eye
- 鑑識結果: forensic findings; appraisal results
- 現場鑑識: crime scene investigation
- 指紋鑑識: fingerprint analysis
- 鑑識力: power of discernment
SIMILAR WORDS:
- 鑑定: appraisal; expert judgment — focuses specifically on the formal expert evaluation of an object's authenticity or value (especially art, jewels, DNA); narrower than 鑑識 sense 2 and lacks the police-forensics meaning.
- 捜査: criminal investigation — the broader police activity of investigating a crime; 鑑識 is one specialized part of 捜査.
- 識別: identification; discrimination — the neutral act of telling things apart; doesn't imply expert judgment of quality.
- 目利き: judge of quality; expert eye — the native, more colloquial term for the connoisseur's eye in sense 2.