Kanji - Level 3 - Kanji

Question 1

矢

Answer 1

Arrow
Radicals: 矢 arrow
The arrow radical and the arrow kanji are the same. Sort of a “straight” shot to memorizing this kanji, you know?
Reading: や
To remember the reading や we use the word “Yankees” (like the evil baseball team, go M’s!).
What is this arrow doing? It’s following around all the Yankee (や) baseball players, stalking them, waiting to make its move (I’ll let you decide what its “move” is).

Question 2

市

Answer 2

City
Radicals: 亠 lid + 巾 towel
You lift the lid off a manhole and there’s a towel with the name of a city on it.
Reading: し
This city must have a lot of sheep (し) because there is a sheep monogram on the towel. It’s the sheep city.

Question 3

牛

Answer 3

Cow
Radicals: 牛 cow
The radical and the kanji for cow are exactly the same! That makes it easy to remember, so long as you know your radicals well enough.
Reading: ぎゅう
Have you ever heard of わぎゅう beef? That ぎゅう is this ぎゅう.

Question 4

切

Answer 4

Cut
Radicals: 七 seven + 刀 sword
If you have seven swords, there’s only so much you can do with them. The main thing? Probably using them to cut something.
Reading: せつ
Because having seven swords for yourself is too much, you decide to take the swords and divide them up amongst pairs of people. You cut them into pairs, and give sets (せつ) to everyone who needs them in the village.

Question 5

方

Answer 5

Direction
Radicals: 方 direction
The radical and the kanji for direction are the same! Huzzah!
There is also another meaning too, though. This can also mean way as well. Think of it this way: When you move in one direction in your life, you are developing your own way. “The way of [your name here].”
Reading: ほう
What direction do you always know? Which direction do you always want to go? Home (ほう). Something about your home always stays with you, no matter how far away you go. So if you’re lost and you don’t know which direction to go, just think of home!

Question 6

戸

Answer 6

Door
Radicals: 戸 door
The radical and the kanji for door are the same!
Reading: と
You open the door and immediately get it closed back on your toe (と), literally causing your toe to explode.

Question 7

太

Answer 7

Fat
Radicals: 大 big + 丶drop
You have a big person here, with an extra drop of something below their thigh, hanging down. That’s fat right there. This person has fat hanging off their fat.
Reading: たい, た
This fat person also has a fat tie (たい). It’s really thick and luxurious. Imagine them tying their lovely fat tie.

Question 8

父

Answer 8

Father
Radicals: 父 father
The radical and the kanji for father are the same.
Reading: ちち, とう
Think about your father laughing like this: ちちちちちちちち〜！

Question 9

少

Answer 9

Few
Radicals: 小 small +丿slide
You have a small slide. The thing about small slides is that they can only fit a few people at a time.
Reading: しょう
Why is there a little traffic jam on the slide? Because the Shougun (しょう) is using the slide and he loves little things. He’s forcing everyone to stop and watch, even though there are people backed up behind him. How inconsiderate.

Question 10

友

Answer 10

Friend
Radicals: ナ narwhal + 又 stool
A narwhal sitting on a stool is your friend.
Reading: ゆう
“Hi friend,” says the narwhal. “I must warn you about all the youths.” (ゆう)

Question 11

毛

Answer 11

Fur
Radicals: 毛 fur
Fur and fur are the same as each other, so the meaning of this kanji should be simple. This can also mean hair, too, though more like furry hair.
Reading: もう
With fur, wisp your imagination to a land where there are stalks of fur all around, just like a big tall grassy field (except instead of grass, it’s fur). You’re surrounded by the black fur, the wind is blowing. Imagine yourself touching the long fur and smelling it. What does it feel / smell like? Now it’s time to get rid of it. There’s just too much hair! To get rid of it, you’ll need to mow (もう) it down with a lawn mower. Imagine yourself starting up the lawn mower, and taking it around, mowing down the hair. Hear the sound of the mower in your head (they’re loud and distinct). The important thing is to imagine yourself mowing everything. Key is to think “fur → In the fur → getting rid of the fur → mow the fur,” in that order. That’ll get you to mow, which will help you to remember the on’yomi.

Question 12

半

Answer 12

Half
Radicals: ⺌ triceratops + 干 dry
A triceratops is lying out to dry. But it’s so big, and it’s laying on its side, so only half of it gets dry.
Reading: はん
“You’re half wet and half dry! I will cut you in half with my laser blaster so you’re proper again,” a voice says. It is Han Solo (はん), the anti-establishment guy who hates when things aren’t even.

Question 13

心

Answer 13

Heart
Radicals: 心 heart
The radical heart and the kanji heart are the same. Rejoice and let your heart be free!
Reading: しん
The heart, where is it stored in your body? Most people thought it was in the chest, but in reality, your heart is stored in your shin (しん).

Question 14

内

Answer 14

Inside
Radicals: 冂 head + 人 person
There’s a person inside your head.
Reading: ない
You know this kanji means inside, so you can keep thinking about the person that’s inside you, running around. You finally discover him, and try to take him out, but before you can, he pulls out a knife (ない) and threatens to cut you if you do anything irrational.

Question 15

生

Answer 15

Life
Radicals: 生 life
The life radical and the life kanji are the same, so hopefully you now just know them both.
Reading: せい, しょう
You can save life or take it away with your new saber (せい). This is the saber you got from doing the correct thing (remember?), and now you need to figure out how to use it with this life. So what do you do?

Question 16

台

Answer 16

Machine
Radicals: ム private + 口 mouth
You have a private mouth that’s a machine. But you have to keep your machine mouth private because it would scare all the non-machine people around you.
Reading: だい, たい
To make sure they can’t tell what’s machine and what’s human, you dye (だい) the mouth to make it look like skin. You find dye the same shade as your normal mouth and just slap it on there.

Question 17

母

Answer 17

Mother
Radicals: 日 sun + 丶drop
The sun lets out one drop, and then another drop. The drops dance together in the air, combine, and when they hit the ground, up sprouts your mother!
Reading: はは, かあ
Suddenly your mother points at you and laughs, “Haha (はは)!” She keeps laughing, haha haha haha, over and over. You start to feel uncomfortable.

Question 18

午

Answer 18

Noon
Radicals: 丿slide + 干 dry
The slide is dry at noon. The sun is brightest at noon, so it dries the morning dew off the slide, making noon the perfect time to slide.
Reading: ご
Noon also happens to be the time Godzilla (ご) decided to attack for the same reasons: it’s dry and kids are using the slide.

Question 19

北

Answer 19

North
扌fingers + 匕 spoon
Balance a spoon on your pointed fingers and it will always point north. The spoon is like a compass needle and your fingers guide the knowledge your body already has and uses it to point north. That’s science, friends!
Reading: ほく
You realize that this ability to find north is probably really valuable, so you go to the nearest pawn shop and hock (ほく) it. Even your fingers.

Question 20

今

Answer 20

Now
Radicals: 今 now
The kanji and the radical are the same, so remembering the meaning of this kanji is as simple as making sure you know the radical for now first! If you know the radical, you know this kanji means now as well.
Reading: こん
Right now the condors (こん) are in danger! Not next week, not next year, right now! Haven’t you heard that deforestation and pollution are killing all of the condors?!

Question 21

古

Answer 21

Old
Kanji: 古 old
The kanji and the radical are the same, so remembering the meaning of this kanji is as simple as making sure you know the radical for old first! If you know the radical, you know this kanji means old as well.
Note: This “old” does not refer to people. Think of it as “old things” instead.
Reading: こ
Old things are misunderstood by the 子s (こ) of the world.

Question 22

元

Answer 22

Origin
Radicals: 元 origin
The origin radical and the origin kanji are the same!
Reading: げん, がん
The origin of everything can be found in Genji (げん). Genji is the name of the main character in the world’s first ever novel, “The Tale of Genji.”
Picture him as a rich, pretty boy who cares a ton about his looks and gets along really well with all the ladies. He’s also really great at poetry, which helps the lady situation.

Question 22

外

Answer 22

Outside
Radicals: 夕 evening + ト toe
You’re known to get the ailment evening toe, which is when your toe catches on fire after getting really, really hot (imagine this happening, ouch!). The only way to fix it is to cool your toe down, and the best way to do that is to go outside.
Reading: がい
You go outside (you’re not supposed to be out there at night!) and you’re accosted by a couple of guys. Then, all of a sudden, Guy (がい) Fawkes jumps from the roof above you and takes them out, then starts running. “Guy Fawkes!” you yell after him!

Question 22

止

Answer 22

Stop
Radicals: 止 stop
The stop radical is the same as the stop kanji.
Reading: し
You have to stop because there is a sheep (し) in front of you. You try to walk around the sheep, but it moves to stop in front of you again. Every time the sheep stops you stop too.

Question 23

分

Answer 23

Part
Radicals: ハ fins + 刀 sword
The fins that fell onto my sword were sliced into two parts.
Reading: ぶん, ふん, ぶ
Now that you’ve cut the fish, it’s time to cut something else into parts. Next on your list is the buns (ぶん), which need to be split up amongst the people.

Question 23

引

Answer 23

Pull
Radicals: 弓 bow + stick
If you have a bow and a stick you need to pull the two back together to shoot it. If you can’t pull it, you won’t be shooting anything.
Reading: ひ
When you pull the bow back, your body strains and you feel an immense heat (ひ) rise inside of you. You keep pulling and the heat grows hotter and hotter.

Question 23

用

Answer 23

Task
Radicals: 用 task
The kanji and the radical are the same, so remembering the meaning of this kanji is as simple as making sure you know the radical for task first! If you know the radical, you know this kanji means task as well.
Reading: よう
Today, your task is to eat yogurt (よう). It’s nutritious, it’s delicious, and I’m telling you to do it, so you have to. A task is basically just something you have to do, so that’s what this is.

Question 24

万

Answer 24

Ten Thousand
Radicals: 丆 leaf + 刀 sword
You cut the leaf with your sword into ten thousand pieces!
Reading: まん, ばん
Now that you have ten thousand pieces of tiny leaf paper, you decide to turn them into a manga (まん)! Each little leaf piece will become a panel.

Question 25

広

Answer 25

Wide
Radicals: 广 canopy + ム private
The canopy you use in private is very wide.
Reading: ひろ
You like being wide because it makes you feel like a different person. But not just any person, like a super hero (ひろ)!

Question 26

冬

Answer 26

Winter
Radicals: 夂 winter + 二 two
We have the winter radical and the two radical (though it’s sort of slanted). What’s two times the winter radical, if radicals are just a part of a kanji? Two times would be enough to create the entire kanji, which is also winter.
Readings: ふゆ
Winter is the time of year you give out presents: “one fo’ you, one fo’you. And… not you, this one’s not fo’ you so fu’ you! (ふゆ)!