市 vs 町
JLPT N5 vocabulary · what is the difference?
市 is an official administrative unit — a city as it appears in addresses and government names like 横浜市 or 市役所. 町 is the everyday word for the town or neighbourhood you actually live in and walk around. When you are talking about your life rather than paperwork, 町 is almost always the natural choice.
When to use each
市
し
Use 市 attached to a place name (名古屋市) or in official compounds: 市内, 市役所, 市のバス, 市の図書館. It marks something as belonging to the municipal government.
住所は大阪市北区です。
じゅうしょはおおさかしきたくです。
My address is Kita Ward, Osaka City.
市役所でパスポートの申請をしました。
しやくしょでパスポートのしんせいをしました。
I applied for a passport at city hall.
町
まち
Use 町 for the town or built-up area as a place you experience — quiet, lively, changing. It is also a real administrative unit smaller than a 市, as in 軽井沢町.
この町には駅が一つしかありません。
このまちにはえきがひとつしかありません。
This town has only one station.
夜の町はとてもにぎやかです。
よるのまちはとてもにぎやかです。
The town is very lively at night.
Sentences where only one works
週末は町を歩くのが好きです。
しゅうまつはまちをあるくのがすきです。
I like walking around town on weekends.
You walk through streets, not through an administrative unit, so 町. 市を歩く is not said.
市の図書館は月曜日が休みです。
しのとしょかんはげつようびがやすみです。
The city library is closed on Mondays.
The library is run by the municipal government, so 市の. 町の図書館 would suggest a small local one instead.
去年、この村は市になりました。
きょねん、このむらはしになりました。
Last year this village became a city.
Here 市 is a legal status a place is granted, which 町 cannot express in this sentence.
Common mistakes
この市は静かです。
この町は静かです。
Describing the feel of where you live calls for 町. この市 sounds like you are reading off a municipal document.
町役所へ行きます。
市役所へ行きます。
The standard word for a city office is 市役所. 町役場 exists, but only for places that really are a 町.
Frequently asked questions
My town is officially a 市. Can I still say 町?
Yes. People in large cities routinely say この町 about their own neighbourhood; 市 is for the official framing.
I have seen 市 read いち. Is that the same word?
No — 市 (いち) means a market, as in 朝市, a morning market. Same kanji, different word.