時節|じせつjisetsu[1]atamadaka (head-high)

1. nounseason
2. nounthe times
3. nounopportunity; occasion
   物ものには時節じせつ、番茶ばんちゃも出花でばな。↗

   There is a time for all things.

• Synonym季節きせつNeutralNeutral everyday word for a season of the year; also for a time of year with a certain character, as in 「梅雨の季節」. Unlike 時節, it never refers to the state of the times.
• SynonymシーズンNeutralColloquial loanword for a peak or sports season: the period when some activity is in full swing. It lacks 時節's sense of the state of the times.
• Synonym時分じぶんNeutralColloquial word for an approximate time or a period of life, as in 「若い時分」. It points to a rough when, not to the state of the times.
• Synonym折おりNeutralNeutral word for an occasion or suitable moment, mostly in the set phrase 「折を見て」 (picking one's moment). It targets a chance to act, not a season or the times.
• Synonym時機じきNeutralThe standard neutral word for timing — the right moment to do something. It covers neither seasons nor the state of the times, unlike 時節.
• Related潮時しおどきWrittenWritten, formal prose for the right moment to act — above all when to begin or wind something up. It names a single juncture, not a season or the times.
• Related時期じきNeutralA neutral word for a period or phase; it can also name a seasonal span, as in 「梅雨の時期」. Unlike 時節, it has no sense of the state of the times.
• Related好機こうきWrittenWritten word for a good, favorable opportunity to act. It carries no sense of season or time of year — purely a chance that suits your purpose.
• Related時宜じぎWrittenWritten word for the fitting moment, mostly in the set phrase 「時宜を得た」 (apt, well-timed); its main use is timing, though it can also mean a seasonable greeting.
• RelatedセゾンNeutralA rare, neutral loanword for the four seasons; today it mostly survives in shop and brand names. It never covers 時節's senses of the times or opportunity.
• Related頃おいころおいWrittenArchaic written word for a time or period, used mostly in the pattern 「〜の頃おい」. It evokes days or an era rather than a chance to act.
• Related候こうWrittenWritten word for the season and its weather, used in letter greetings like 「〜の候」. It speaks of climate, not of the times or of opportunity.

Use 「時節」 for seasonal greetings in letters or for the way the times are going, as in 「時節柄ご自愛ください」; an awaited opportunity arriving is 「時節到来」. For an ordinary season say 「季節」, for the right moment to act 「時機」, and for peak or sports seasons 「シーズン」. The rest range from everyday period words like 「時期」 to written terms for timing and letter greetings.

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

1. 時候じこう、季節きせつ。
2. 時機じき、機会きかい、チャンス。
3. 情勢じょうせい、時勢じせい。