How to say "commandant" in Japanese

• 司令しれいCommon
  noun, suru verb, transitive verbChiefly means 'command' — the act, order, or authority of commanding — and only by extension a commander or commandant; when 'commandant' refers to a person, 司令官 is the word to reach for.
• 司令官しれいかんCommon
  nounThe officer who holds command — a commanding officer or commandant of a unit or installation; this is the natural choice when 'commandant' denotes a person rather than the command itself.
  司令官しれいかんは部下ぶかに向むかって直ただちに発砲はっぽうするよう命令めいれいを発はっした。↗

  The commander gave orders that his men fire at once.

Use 司令官 when 'commandant' means a person, the officer holding command; 司令 chiefly denotes 'command' itself — the order or authority — and only secondarily the commander, so it is rarely the word for the person.

Usage comparisons are AI-assisted and cross-checked by multiple models; for study reference only

• 司令しれいcommand
• 司令官しれいかんcommandant