What's the equivalent to densha, futsuu, tokkyuu, and kyuukou in the West?


I know that they are all trains, but what would their counterparts be in the
US or even Western Europe? Or better yet, when do you use one train as opposed
to the other?




電車 【でんしゃ】 (densha) is an electric train, because 電 refers to electric.

普通 【ふつう】 (futsuu) is a local train, one that stops at every station.

特急 【とっきゅう】 (tokkyuu) is an express or limited stop train. These usually only
stop at main stations to reduce the travel time. 急 refers to the speed such as
rapid or fast.

急行 【きゅうこう】 (kyuukou) is a high speed train, relatively speaking, in any area.
Refers to the speed of the train, not necessarily the transit time. Rough
interpretation of the kanji would mean something like "moves fast".

I doubt these types are specific to any country, to the extent such services
are available.

