本文 / 本研究【běnwén / běn yánjiū】

本 means "this" in formal writing, and 本文 is how a paper refers to itself. It stands where English writes "this paper" or "we", as the subject of verbs like 讨论, 分析, 认为, 采用.

A Chinese paper rarely says 我 or 我们. Its arguments are given to 本文, and where a person has to appear, the writer is 笔者 "the author".

The same 本 names the smaller units of a text: 本章 "this chapter", 本节 "this section", 本书 "this book".

For one occasion, 本 takes a measure word: 本次调查 "this survey", 本次会议 "this meeting". 本 before an organisation, as in 本公司, is a separate point.

Mistakes

本 already means "this", so 这 doesn't go with it. And 本 joins the one-syllable 文; with the two-syllable 文章 the phrase is 这篇文章.

• × 这本文讨论… → 本文讨论…
• × 本文章讨论… → 本文讨论… / 这篇文章讨论…