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In Japanese, there are numerous pairs (and even triplets) of comparable kanji.
To learn kanji higher, it’s essential to develop your abilities at rapidly figuring out the variations between them.
Under, we’ll discover related kanji pairs and teams you’re prone to encounter, plus ideas for evaluating and contrasting Japanese characters on the whole.
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1. 甘 and 廿
This pair brings collectively a quite common character and one other one which’s fairly uncommon however can nonetheless be seen right here and there.
甘 means “candy.”
廿 means the quantity 20; it’s the single-character equal of writing 二十, and these days it’s used principally in historic contexts.
Foremost readings:
甘: カン, あま (い)
廿: ジュウ, にじゅう
The distinction:
甘 has a horizontal stroke within the center.
Mnemonic:
Consuming twenty (廿) desserts for dessert generally is a little too candy (甘) for you.
2. 井 and 丼
井 primarily means “nicely,” as in, a gap for drawing water from deep within the floor. It’s additionally a part of the widespread phrase 天井 (てんじょう: “ceiling”).
丼 means “donburi,” a sort of deep bowl that’s used for decent dishes of rice topped with varied different components. This character is used each for the bowl itself and for the dishes which might be usually served in it.
Foremost readings:
井: ショウ, い
丼: ショウ, どんぶり (additionally seems within the shortened kind どん)
The distinction:
丼 has a brief dot stroke within the center. This stroke is definitely the novel of the character!
Mnemonic:
My donburi (丼) has fallen to the underside of the nicely (井).
3. 鳥 and 烏
That is one other a type of circumstances the place a small, hard-to-see line could make a distinction.
鳥 encompasses something that goes underneath the title of “hen.”
烏, however, solely designates a really specific type of hen: a crow or a raven.
Foremost readings:
鳥: チョウ, とり
烏: ウ, からす
The distinction:
鳥 has a horizontal stroke within the higher rectangular enclosure.
Mnemonic:
Huge crows (烏) have taken over this tree and scared away all the opposite birds (鳥).
4. 牛 and 午
Listed here are two four-legged animals separated by the totally different size of a single stroke.
牛 refers to cattle, whether or not feminine or male (cow, bull, ox, and so on.).
午 is generally seen within the which means of “noontime,” but in addition means “horse.”
How so? The time frame that corresponds to noontime was historically known as the Hour of the Horse. Japanese learners are higher off memorizing 午 as “noontime,” which is probably the most sensible and customary which means.
Foremost readings:
牛: ギュウ, うし
午: ゴ, うま
The distinction:
The vertical stroke in 牛 crosses the highest horizontal stroke. In 午 it merges with the horizontal line with out going above it.
Mnemonic:
I normally feed my cow (牛) round midday (午).
5. 陳 and 陣
These characters are among the many extra simply confused, as a consequence of the truth that they not solely look very related, however are additionally shut in considered one of their meanings.
陳 means “align,” “give an announcement” or “outdated; stale.”
陣 means “array,” “formation” or “encampment.”
Foremost readings:
陳: チン, の (べる)
陣: ジン, じんだて
The distinction:
The precise part of 陳 is 東; the best part of 陣 is 車.
Mnemonic:
The battle formations (陣) are completely aligned (陳) dealing with one another.
6. 緑 and 縁
These are two quite common characters in on a regular basis Japanese.
緑 means “inexperienced” or “greenery.”
縁 means “connection” or “edge” and likewise refers back to the conventional veranda round a Japanese home, which known as 縁側 (えんがわ).
Foremost readings:
緑: リョク, みどり
縁: エン, ふち
The distinction:
The part within the decrease proper quadrant of every character is totally different. Take particular care with this one, as the 2 parts are themselves fairly related, particularly in small print.
Mnemonic:
I’m sitting on the sting of the veranda (縁) and gazing on the lush inexperienced (緑) garden.
7. 酒 and 洒
酒 is a standard character with the broad which means of “alcoholic drinks.”
洒, a rarer character, means each “rinse” and “refreshing.” Its most typical look is within the phrase 洒落 (しゃれ: “witticism” or “stylishness”), however that is truly an ateji, or a kanji spelling related to a preexisting phrase.
Foremost readings:
酒: シュ, さけ
洒: シャ, そそ (ぐ)
The distinction:
酒 has a horizontal stroke contained in the sq. enclosure, parallel to the underside line.
Mnemonic:
If you drink alcohol (酒), you’d higher rinse (洒) your mouth to really feel refreshed (洒).
8. 矢 and 失
矢 means “arrow.”
失 means “lose; misplace.” Between the 2, it’s far more widespread in on a regular basis Japanese.
Foremost readings:
矢: シ, や
失: シツ, うしな (う)
The distinction:
In 失 the center vertical stroke (which slants to the left) begins above the highest horizontal stroke and crosses it. In 矢 the identical central stroke begins exactly on the horizontal stroke.
Mnemonic:
In case you shoot your arrow (矢) too far, you’ll lose (失) sight of it.
9. 挙 and 拳
挙 is among the collection of kanji which have the overall which means of “elevate; rise.” One of many widespread phrases that embody it’s 選挙 (せんきょ: “election”).
拳 means “fist,” so the 2 characters will be readily related to one another in a mnemonic sentence, as you’ll see under.
Foremost readings:
挙: キョ, あ (げる)
拳: ケン, こぶし
The distinction:
The uppermost part. In 拳 there are two horizontal strains and the slanting strokes start above the highest line.
Mnemonic:
The protesters have been elevating (挙) their fists (拳) whereas shouting indignant chants.
10. 治 and 冶
治 has the overall which means of “oversee; management; rule,” and is a quite common character, for instance within the phrase 政治 (せいじ: “politics”).
冶, which suggests “to forged metals,” is rarer, making it troublesome to note the distinction from 治 each time 冶 does pops up.
Foremost readings:
治: チ, おさ (める)
冶: ヤ, い (る)
The distinction:
The novel on the left. 治 has the three-stroke water radical, whereas 冶 has the two-stroke ice radical.
Mnemonic:
Dictators consider that ruling (治) a rustic is like casting metals (冶) in no matter form they need.
11. 旬 and 句
句 means “phrase; verse.”
旬 has two distinct meanings: “season,” as within the peak time when sure meals are produced and consumed, and “a ten-day interval.”
Foremost readings:
句: ク, あ (たる)
旬: シュン, ジュン
The distinction:
The central part, which is 口 in 句 and 日 in 旬.
Mnemonic:
Each ten days (旬) he comes up with a brand new phrase (句).
12. 免 and 兔
免 is a standard character that may imply both “evade” or “enable.”
兔 is a considerably much less widespread kanji which means “rabbit.”
Foremost readings:
免: メン, まぬか (れる)
兔: ト, うさぎ
The distinction:
兔 has an extra dot stroke within the decrease proper quadrant.
Mnemonic:
Rabbits (兔) can run quick, so that they’re excellent at evading (免) their duties.
13. 又 and 叉
These characters not solely look virtually the identical, but in addition share an an identical kun-yomi studying, making all of them too simple to confuse with one another. However regardless of all that, their meanings are distinct sufficient.
又 means “once more” or “extra.”
叉 has the overall which means of “splitting level,” and normally stands for a fork in a street, river, and so on. 叉 additionally means “a crotch within the human physique” however 股 is extra generally used.
Foremost readings:
又: ユウ, また
叉: サ, また
The distinction:
叉 has an extra dot stroke within the center.
Mnemonic:
This street simply retains getting an increasing number of (又) complicated; there’s a brand new fork (叉) each couple of steps.
14. 輪 and 輸
輪 means “circle; ring; wheel.”
輸 means “to haul; to move.”
The meanings are distinct however not utterly unrelated, which isn’t stunning contemplating that each characters share the car radical (車).
Foremost readings:
輪: リン, わ
輸: ユ, いた (す)
The distinction:
The underside part on the best aspect of every character.
Mnemonic:
Whereas hauling (輸) items, the truck’s wheels (輪) immediately got here off.
15. 賃, 貸 and 貨
This group needs to be probably the most pesky triplet of the joyo kanji checklist, with each types and meanings being irritatingly related.
賃 means “to rent; hire; utilization charges.”
貸 means “to lend; mortgage.”
貨 stands for “items; valuables.”
Foremost readings:
賃: チン, やと (う)
貸: タイ, か (す)
貨: カ, たから
The distinction:
The rightmost part on the high (non-radical) a part of every character. The opposite parts—the novel 貝 and the part 亻(which means 人, “particular person”)—are shared by all three.
Mnemonic:
In case you can’t pay the hire (賃), you’ll need to lend (貸) me all your valuables (貨).
16. 科 and 料
科 means “rubric” or “class.”
料 has a number of totally different meanings: “payment; cost,” “materials” and “measure.”
Foremost readings:
科: カ, しな
料: リョウ, はか (る)
The distinction:
The novel on the left aspect of the character. In 科 it’s the grain radical (禾); in 料 it’s the rice radical (米).
Mnemonic:
This course is in a unique class (科), so that you’ll need to pay greater charges (料).
17. 延 and 廷
延 means “prolong; postpone,” within the transitive in addition to the intransitive senses of these verbs.
廷 means “courtroom,” normally in affiliation with a courthouse or a royal courtroom.
Foremost readings:
延: エン, の (びる), の (ばす)
廷: テイ; にわ
The distinction:
The precise (non-radical) part. The enclosing radical is identical in each characters.
Mnemonic:
The courtroom (廷) has postponed (延) the decision indefinitely.
18. 態 and 熊
態, which means “kind; method; look,” will likely be acquainted to you from the omnipresent phrase 状態 (じょうたい: “state; situation”).
熊, however, is one thing far more tangible: a bear.
Foremost readings:
態: タイ, わざ (と)
熊: ユウ, くま
The distinction:
The novel, which on this case is the underside part of every character. 態 has an abbreviated type of the center radical (心), whereas 熊 has an abbreviated type of the fireplace radical (火).
Mnemonic:
Some bears (熊) act in an virtually human-like method (態).
19. 逐 and 遂
逐 has the essential which means of “observe,” however is used most frequently for a specialised operate of “by,” as in 逐日 (ちくじつ: “daily”) or 逐一 (ちくいち: “one after the other”).
遂 is a extra widespread character which means “obtain; accomplish.”
Foremost readings:
逐: チク, お (う)
遂:すい, と (げる), つい (に)
The distinction:
遂 has two strokes above the horizontal line on the higher proper aspect. In 逐 there’s nothing above that line.
Mnemonic:
I’m rigorously following (逐) the directions so as to obtain (遂) the aim.
20. 雲 and 曇
Aside from the same types, these two kanji have very shut meanings, that are additionally mirrored of their kun-yomi readings.
雲 is “cloud.”
曇 is “cloudiness; overcast sky” and also you’ll see it lots in weather-related texts.
Is it actually crucial to make use of two separate kanji on this case? Apparently, the Japanese assume so!
Foremost readings:
雲: ウン, くも
曇: ドン, くも (る)
The distinction:
The novel, which is the highest part in every character. 雲 makes use of the rain radical (雨), whereas 曇 switches to the solar radical (日), which is included as an extra part.
Mnemonic:
Cloudiness (曇) is sort of a blanket manufactured from particular person clouds (雲).
The way to Be taught Related Kanji
Visually related characters just like the kanji above will be tough to be taught on the go. Apart from utilizing kanji flashcards or apps, generally one of the simplest ways is to present them some particular consideration that clarifies the variations between them. There are two efficient strategies for this:
Have a look at the person parts
One methodology is to actively study and memorize the person parts of characters that you just discover to be too shut for consolation. If you come throughout such characters, look them up in a kanji dictionary with clear, handy stroke order diagrams or animations, reminiscent of Jisho.
Rigorously research the composition of each characters in the same pair and write them down aspect by aspect till you’ve gotten absorbed their variations utterly.
Attempt mnemonic sentences
One other useful methodology is to make use of mnemonic sentences wherein each/all related kanji seem. Such mnemonic sentences have been offered within the checklist above, and you’ll simply observe their mannequin to create your individual.
For the reason that level of learning with mnemonic sentences is to be taught the types of the characters somewhat than their pronunciations or features, the sentences ought to be in English or any language you’re comfy with—not essentially in Japanese.
In case you want extra assist and steering, then you may search assist from a course like Lingualift. LinguaLift is a very good choice for these seeking to enhance their kanji recognition, because it has its personal Kanji Academy instrument to coach you in precisely that. Join a free lesson to see how LinguaLift can get you thru kanji classes in a single piece.
Obtain:
This weblog put up is offered as a handy and moveable PDF that you just
can take wherever.
Click on right here to get a replica. (Obtain)
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