一日一字

i’m hoping i’ll have time to write up some stuff soon so there shouldn’t be too long of a hiatus!!

This character is a combination of 忄 heart/feelings and 賁 a non-general use character meaning “decorate.” 賁 itself is a combination of a simplification of 奔 run, here meaning “to swell out,” and 貝 shell/shellfish. 賁 carries a meaning of a beautiful, large, bulging shell. In 憤, 賁 is a phonetic element signaling the on’yomi, while certainly also lending its connotations of “to swell/burst out.” Together with 忄, this gives “feelings building up and bursting forth,” which led to the current meanings of “indignation” and “anger.”

This character is a combination of 宀 roof/building and 番 number. Here 番 is a phonetic element signaling the on’yomi, while also lending a meaning of to “know (thoroughly).” It is also likely lending a connotation of “systematic/in order.” One explanation is that 審 originally referred to “thorough knowledge of a building,” and over time came to mean “have thorough knowledge” in general. In this case, the meanings of “judge” and “investigate” developed through association.

This character is a combination of 亻 person and 義 righteousness. 義 is a phonetic element signaling the on’yomi, while also lending its own meaning. Here it also carries a connotation of “correctness” and “rationality.” Together with 亻, it gave a meaning of “righteous (correct) person,” and over time came instead to refer to “the ways in which a person becomes righteous.” This gives the current meanings of “rule/convention.” “Ceremony” is an associated meaning.

This character is a combination of 氵 water and 帶/帯 belt. 帯 is a phonetic element signaling the on’yomi, but is also lending its own connotation of “contain/restrict,” and here carries a meaning of “stop.” With 氵 this gives “a flow of water stopped and unmoving.” It has come to mean “stop/stagnate” in a general sense.

This character is a combination of 莫 a non-general use character meaning “must not/do not/be not” and 巾 cloth. 莫 itself depicts the sun sinking among the plants, and carries a meaning of “conceal.” Here 莫 is a phonetic element signaling the on’yomi, but it is also working to lend its own meaning. Together with 巾 this gives “cloth which conceals,” or a “curtain.” The other meanings have all developed through association.

This character is a combination of 衣 clothing and 口 mouth. There are multiple theories for the origin of this character. One is that it represents covering the mouth with a cloth, or, in a figurative sense, “covering/stifling one’s (sad) feelings/thoughts and keeping them inside one’s heart.”

Older forms of this character show that it was a combination of 虍 tiger, claw (backwards ヨ), and 几 (人) person. 虐 depicted a tiger catching/clawing a person, and came to represent “cruelty/brutality.” “Oppress” is an associated meaning.

This character is a combination of 而 and yet/but/however and 寸 measure/hand. 而 itself developed from the image of a beard, and here is being used to express that meaning. 寸 here means “careful use of the hand.” 耐 is a pictograph that referred to “shaving off a beard,” which was a minor punishment (the next level up was shaving the hair). This in turn symbolized something that was  “not too bad” and “bearable.”

This character is a combination of 木 tree and 古 old. Here 古 is a phonetic element signaling the on’yomi. Some say that 古 developed from the image of a skull, giving it a meaning of something hard and old. It is likely lending that connotation here, giving 枯 a meaning of an old, hard, dried up tree. This then symbolizes “decaying” and “withering” in a more general sense.

This character was formerly written 顯, a combination of 㬎 a Chinese-only character meaning “motes (small particles of dust)” and 頁 head. 㬎 itself is a combination of 日 sun and 絲 threads. One source says that 㬎 represents laying silk threads out in the sun. With the addition of 頁, this gives 㬎 a meaning of putting ones face out into a bright place/the light of day, letting it be clearly seen. This led to the meaning of “visible” in general, and also “manifest.”

I do! Besides just using it in my own personal life (which I did a lot while I was in Japan... it saved my butt countless times lol), it’s actually one of the sources I check for the JLPT level and School Grade of each kanji. I’ll also put any meanings they list in the tags for each post.

This character was formerly written 緣, a combination of 糸 thread and 彖 a Chinese-only character meaning “pig/hedgehog.” Here 彖 is a phonetic element signaling the on’yomi, while also lending a meaning of “dangling edge” (from the image of a pig with a rounded, hanging stomach). Together with 糸 this gives “threads used for edging/hemming” or “threads used for decorating/embroidering the edges of clothes/cloth.” Over time 縁 came to mean “edge” in general. The meanings of “relations” and “ties” are thought by some scholars to be the result of borrowings.

Stay safe!!! ♡