カテゴリー: H

This kanji originally depicted a person on top of a tower, keeping watch into the distance day and night. Because of this, the kanji came to mean ‘hope’—the kind that never gives up and seeks a way to break through difficult situations.

Words & Phrases

• 望遠(bouen):A device that uses lenses to make distant objects appear larger.
• 望郷(boukyou):Missing one’s hometown
• 希望（kibou):Wishing for a better future, both in who you want to become and what you hope for others.

This kanji consists of two parts. On the left is the “body” radical, and on the right is a woman with her hands on her hips, which represents the body’s most important part. Together, this kanji means “hip” or “the most vital physical point.”

This kanji depicts manacles, an ancient torture device. Many people wonder why a symbol for manacles came to mean ‘happy’？ The center of the kanji shows the empty hole where a hand should be, symbolizing the good fortune of narrowly escaping torture.

This kanji depicts a plant growing up from the soil, with its branches and leaves hanging down. Therefore, this kanji came to mean ‘to hang down’ or ‘to droop.’

This kanji depicts two people sitting opposite each other with a plate of food between them. Therefore, this kanji came to mean ‘hometown’—a place where people gather to eat and live together.

This character symbolizes the shape of an animal that was deeply intertwined with the lives of primitive people. In its lines, you can spot a silhouette just like the iconic Ferrari logo—yes, this character means ‘horse.’ This majestic horse is heading right, firmly standing on its legs, with its tail swept down!

This shape captures nothing but the sharp form of a rhinoceros horn, perfectly standing for ‘horn’ itself!

In this figure, you can see a human standing with their arms and legs spread wide. Above their head, a single line is drawn to represent ‘the space far above mankind.’ Therefore, this character means ‘heaven’ in a single word.

You can clearly see the shape of a hand in this figure. Therefore, this character directly represents ‘hand’.

You can easily spot the shape of a castle in this figure. Evolving over time, this character has come to represent the concepts of ‘tall’ and ‘high’.