養子 ... can it also mean "foster child"?

Japanese Language
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養子

Kanji for “foster” and “child”. I keep entering this as “foster child”, which WaniKani says is incorrect. There is a difference (in English) between a “foster child” and “adopted child”. I grew up with the term “foster child” (in life, TV shows, etc).

I found another topic on the matter, but it never had a satisfying answer. It’s just people guessing or not knowing the difference between “foster child” and “adopted child”.

In Japanese, does 養子 explicitly only mean “a formally adopted child”, or can it also mean “a fostered child”?

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Daijirin defines it as:

養子縁組みによって子となった者

i.e. somebody who has become someone’s child via 養子縁組み, where the latter is

親子の血縁のない者の間に、親と嫡出子 (ちゃくしゅつし) との親子関係と同じ法律関係を成立させる法律行為。

the legal act that puts the parent and non-blood-relation child in to the same legal status as a parent and child.

So I would say the central meaning is “formally adopted child”. It’s not impossible that it might sometimes be used more loosely, in the same way “adopted” in English doesn’t 100% always mean “legally adopted”. But I think you should probably stick to the central meaning as the one you are reinforcing through the SRS.

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