jō This character is used as part of compounds. It has two meanings: a letter and appearance. Letters shojō … a letter (It sounds classical.) suisenjō… a letter of recommendation (Suisen means recommendation.) shōkaijō … a letter of introduction (shōkai means introduction.) nen ga jō … New Year’s greetings shōjō … a certificate or a [...]

gi We use this character when we express something related to formal occasions or ceremonial moments. Gishiki, girei and gi mean a ceremony. You can put “girei teki(na)” before nouns such as “gyō ji (event)” to emphasize its ceremonial aspect. Reigi means manners. Rude people may be criticized as “reigi shirazu (ignorance of manners).” Shūgi [...]

i-ru, kyo If you stay somewhere comfortably, you can describe the place as “igoko chi ga yoi ba sho” or “igoko chi no yoi ba sho.” Such comfortable place is called “iba sho.” Igokochi shows how comfortable it is to be there. As I wrote yesterday, “ba sho” means a place. Jūkyo is a formal [...]

miyako, to While miyako means Kyōto in ancient times or the old capital, this character itself does not imply oldness. It means a metropolis or a large city. Its original meaning is a place where a palace is. The Metropolis of “Tō kyō” is “Tō kyō to.” Other areas of local government are called “ken,” [...]

taku This character implies a residence. When you talk to somebody, you can address them as “otaku” or call their house “otaku.” When you want to ask somebody if you can visit their house, say, “otaku ni ukagatte mo yoroshiidesuka?” Ukagatte (ukagau) means to visit. Yoroshiidesuka means, “May I (do something)?” The word “otaku” is coined [...]

ken, gen This character is used as part of compounds. Here are some examples. keiken … experience taiken … experiencing, the experience you gained through doing something physically jikken … experiment shiken … examination (The “shi” of “shiken” means “to test.”) chiken … clinical testing, testing medicine before it is allowed to be sold to [...]

yoshi, gi Yoshi is used for people’s names. In Confucian theory, “gi” is the right way. In other words, it implies the gist of Confucian teachings. Since Confucian ideas influenced Japanese kanji culture, we have common terms including this character. When we use these terms, we hardly realize they have something to do with Confucius. [...]

se, sei, somu-ku, somu-keru, hai On May 5th, families with small children used to measure their height and to scratch a wooden pillar to compare their height with that measured in the previous year. This minor family ritual is called seikurabe. They are happy to find how tall the kid becomes in a year. Kurabe [...]

kako-mu, kako-mareru, kako-mi, kako-u, kako-i, i The verb “kakomu” means to surround something or to box something on documents. The noun form of “kakomu” is “kakomi.” The passive form of it is “kakomareru.” The verb “kakou” means to enclose something. Its noun form is “kakoi,” which often means a fence that surrounds a property. As [...]