Nature, growth & ability
Tap an example word to hear it pronounced.
On'yomi & Kun'yomi
On'yomi (音読み) is the reading borrowed from Chinese, usually used in compound words, e.g. 三月 (さんがつ, March).
Kun'yomi (訓読み) is the native Japanese reading, used when the kanji stands alone or takes kana endings, e.g. 三つ (みっつ, three items).
By convention the readings list writes on'yomi in katakana (シュ) and kun'yomi in hiragana (さけ). Example words show furigana in hiragana, so the same on'yomi can look like シュ in the list but しゅ in a word.
What the component colors mean
Blue - the main radical the kanji is filed under in dictionaries.
Green - a component that hints at the meaning.
Orange - a component that hints at the reading (sound).
Grey - another building block, with no clear meaning or sound role.
cherry-blossom pink
cherry blossoms at night
cherry-blossom front
Shinkansen (bullet train)
executive, cadre
main line, trunk line
edamame
twig, small branch
branching off
oxygen
acidity
sour
eyeglasses
ophthalmology
the naked eye
fertilizer
obesity
to grow fat, to become fertile
fuel
combustion
to burn (intransitive)
independence
single, unmarried
single, sole
ability, capacity
possible
talent
the present, now
reality
to appear
mountain range
context
Practice
Test yourself on this lesson's kanji.