Dō (architecture)

Dō (堂, temple, shrine, hall, reception room; also shop, store[1]).

[note 1] Some words ending in -dō are Butsu-dō, hō-dō, hon-dō, jiki-dō, kaisan-dō, kō-dō, kon-dō, kyō-dō, mandara-dō, miei-dō, mi-dō, sō-dō, Yakushi-dō and zen-dō.

With some exceptions, for example the words hondō, hokke-dō and kon-dō, these terms do not indicate any particular structure.

The suffix is used sometimes also in a lay context, as for example in the word shokudō (食堂, lit.

[2] The word is usually translated in English as "bay" and is better understood as an indication of proportions than as a unit of measurement.