主|しゅshu[1]atamadaka (head-high)

1. noun(one's) master; (one's) employer; (one's) lord
2. nounleader (of a country, group, etc.); head; chief
3. noun, ChristianityLord
4. nounmain thing; chief part; first consideration; primary object; principal aim

• Synonym主人しゅじんNeutralEveryday word for the head of a household, a shop owner, or one's husband; 「主（しゅ）」 is more written in tone, covering a lord, sovereign, or the Christian Lord.
• Synonym雇い主やといぬしNeutralAn employer—someone who hires workers; the emphasis is on the employment relationship.
• Synonym飼い主かいぬしNeutralOwner of a pet or livestock; the word is limited to animals and does not apply to people.
• Synonym主君しゅくんWrittenA lord to whom retainers owe allegiance; feudal in flavor and written in tone.
• Synonym雇用主こようぬしWrittenAn employer or employing organization; used mainly in legal and labor contexts, written in tone.
• Related持ち主もちぬしNeutralThe person something belongs to, as in 「持ち主不明」 (owner unknown); covers possession only, not lordship.
• RelatedオーナーNeutralLoanword for the owner or boss of a shop, team, or business; common in colloquial speech.
• Related所有者しょゆうしゃWrittenFormal, written-style term for a legal owner; it has no lord or master sense.
• Related使用者しようしゃWrittenA user of a place or thing; also an employer, though that sense belongs mostly to labor-law contexts.
• Related君主くんしゅWrittenA monarch or sovereign ruler of a state, as in 「専制君主」; centers on ruling, written in tone.
• Related殿様とのさまNeutralA feudal lord or daimyo; also used sarcastically of a sheltered, arrogant man who knows nothing of the world.
• Related社主しゃしゅWrittenOwner or head of a company, especially a newspaper; industry jargon, written in tone.
• Related領主りょうしゅWrittenA feudal lord ruling a territory; historical, written-style term centered on territorial rule.
• Related経営者けいえいしゃNeutralA business manager or proprietor; centers on running a company and has no lord or master sense.
• Related所有主しょゆうぬしWrittenWritten-style word for the owner of a thing; it has none of the lord or master senses of 「主（しゅ）」.
• Related所持者しょじしゃWrittenWritten word for a possessor; stresses holding something on one's person or in hand.
• Related抱え主かかえぬしWrittenHistorical term for the employer or master of a geisha or the like; old-fashioned and written in tone.
• Antonym客きゃくNeutralAntonym: a guest or customer; the counterpart of the host, as in 「主客」.
• Antonym従じゅうWrittenAntonym: subordination or a subordinate; the opposite of 「主」, as in 「主従」; written in tone.
• Antonym客賓まろうどWrittenArchaic word for a guest from afar; set against the host, with an old-fashioned flavor.

Use 「主（しゅ）」 in written or formal prose for a lord, sovereign, or the Christian Lord, as in 「主の祈り」 and 「主従関係」. For everyday senses turn to a compound: 「主人」 for the head of a household, 「雇い主」 for an employer, 「持ち主」 for the owner of a thing, 「オーナー」 for a shop or team boss, 「君主」 for a monarch, and 「従」 for a subordinate.

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

1. ある領域りょういきや組織そしきを治おさめている人ひと。主人しゅじん。
2. 行為こういをする者もの。行為こういの主体しゅたい。
3. 大部分だいぶぶん。大切たいせつな部分ぶぶん。核心かくしんの部分ぶぶん。おもだつ部分ぶぶん。
4. キリスト教きりすときょうにおける神かみ、イエス・キリストの別称べっしょう。