Body and Health Kanji
This lesson introduces essential N4-level kanji such as ไฝ (body), ็ฎ (eye), ๅฃ (mouth), ๆ (hand), ่ถณ (foot), ๆญฏ (tooth), ่ณ (ear), ้ผป (nose), ้ ญ (head), ๅฟ (heart/mind), ๅป (doctor/medical), ็ (illness), and ่ฌ (medicine). Practice recognizing these kanji in sentences about symptoms, daily health, and medical situations, reinforcing both on'yomi and kun'yomi readings within meaningful contexts.
๐ฏ Goal: Learn N4 kanji related to the body and health in context.
Lesson Content
Learning Goal
By the end of this lesson, you will be able to read and understand 8 N4 kanji related to the body and health: ไฝ (body), ็ฎ (eye), ๅฃ (mouth), ๆ (hand), ่ถณ (foot/leg), ่ณ (ear), ๅฟ (heart/mind), and ๅป (medicine/doctor). You will learn their meanings, common readings, and how they appear in everyday words and phrases.
Concept
Kanji for body parts and health are very common in Japanese. They often appear in compound words (two or more kanji together) to describe specific body parts, actions, or medical terms. Many of these kanji have both an on'yomi (Chinese reading, used in compounds) and a kun'yomi (Japanese reading, used alone or with hiragana). In this lesson, we focus on the most useful readings and real-life examples.
Step-by-Step Breakdown
1. ไฝ (body)
- Meanings: body, form, substance
- Common readings: ใใใ (karada, kun'yomi), ใฟใค (tai, on'yomi)
- Example words:
- ไฝ (ใใใ , karada) = body
- ไฝ่ฒ (ใใใใ, taiiku) = physical education (lit. "body education")
- ๅคงไฝ (ใ ใใใ, daitai) = mostly, generally (lit. "big body" โ main part)
2. ็ฎ (eye)
- Meanings: eye, look, sight
- Common readings: ใ (me, kun'yomi), ใใ (moku, on'yomi)
- Example words:
- ็ฎ (ใ, me) = eye
- ็ฎ็ (ใใใฆใ, mokuteki) = purpose, goal (lit. "eye's target")
- ็ฎ็ (ใใ ใพ, medama) = eyeball (also a fried egg!)
3. ๅฃ (mouth)
- Meanings: mouth, opening, entrance
- Common readings: ใใก (kuchi, kun'yomi), ใใ (kล, on'yomi), ใ (ku, on'yomi)
- Example words:
- ๅฃ (ใใก, kuchi) = mouth
- ๅ ฅๅฃ (ใใใใก, iriguchi) = entrance (lit. "enter mouth")
- ๅบๅฃ (ใงใใก, deguchi) = exit (lit. "exit mouth")
4. ๆ (hand)
- Meanings: hand, arm
- Common readings: ใฆ (te, kun'yomi), ใใ (shu, on'yomi)
- Example words:
- ๆ (ใฆ, te) = hand
- ๆ็ด (ใฆใใฟ, tegami) = letter (lit. "hand paper")
- ไธๆ (ใใใใ, jลzu) = skillful (lit. "upper hand")
5. ่ถณ (foot/leg)
- Meanings: foot, leg, enough
- Common readings: ใใ (ashi, kun'yomi), ใใ (soku, on'yomi)
- Example words:
- ่ถณ (ใใ, ashi) = foot/leg
- ่ถณใใ (ใใใ, tariru) = to be enough (verb)
- ่ถณ้ณ (ใใใใจ, ashioto) = footsteps (lit. "foot sound")
6. ่ณ (ear)
- Meanings: ear
- Common readings: ใฟใฟ (mimi, kun'yomi), ใ (ji, on'yomi)
- Example words:
- ่ณ (ใฟใฟ, mimi) = ear
- ่ณ้ผป็ง (ใใณใ, jibika) = otorhinolaryngology (ear-nose-throat department)
- ๆฉ่ณ (ใฏใใฟใฟ, hayamimi) = quick to hear news (lit. "fast ear")
7. ๅฟ (heart/mind)
- Meanings: heart, mind, spirit, core
- Common readings: ใใใ (kokoro, kun'yomi), ใใ (shin, on'yomi)
- Example words:
- ๅฟ (ใใใ, kokoro) = heart/mind
- ๅฎๅฟ (ใใใใ, anshin) = relief (lit. "peace heart")
- ๅฟ้ (ใใใฑใ, shinpai) = worry (lit. "heart distribute")
8. ๅป (medicine/doctor)
- Meanings: medicine, doctor, heal
- Common readings: ใ (i, on'yomi only)
- Example words:
- ๅป่ (ใใใ, isha) = doctor (lit. "medicine person")
- ็ ้ข (ใณใใใใ, byลin) = hospital (uses ็ = sick, not ๅป)
- ๅปๅญฆ (ใใใ, igaku) = medical science
Mini Examples
| Japanese | Romaji | English |
|---|---|---|
| ไฝใๅคงใใ | karada ga ลkii | The body is big |
| ็ฎใๆชใ | me ga warui | (My) eyes are bad |
| ๅฃใ้ใใ | kuchi o akeru | Open (your) mouth |
| ๆใๆดใ | te o arau | Wash (your) hands |
| ่ถณใ็ใ | ashi ga itai | (My) leg/foot hurts |
| ่ณใ่ใใใ | mimi ga kikoeru | (I) can hear (lit. ears hear) |
| ๅฟใๅชใใ | kokoro ga yasashii | (Their) heart is kind |
| ๅป่ ใซ่กใ | isha ni iku | Go to the doctor |
Common Mistake
Mixing up ไฝ (body) and ไผ (rest/break).
- ไฝ (ใใใ ) has the radical ไบป (person) + ๆฌ (book/origin).
- ไผ (ใใใ) has ไบป (person) + ๆจ (tree) โ imagine a person leaning against a tree to rest.
- They look similar, but ไฝ has a horizontal line at the bottom (ๆฌ), while ไผ has a vertical line (ๆจ).
Quick Practice
Fill in the blanks with the correct kanji from this lesson.
-
ๆฏๆใ__ (hand) ใๆดใใพใใ
Maiasa, __ o araimasu. (Every morning I wash my hands.)
Answer: ๆ -
ใใฎ__ (doctor) ใฏใจใฆใ่ฆชๅใงใใ
Ano __ wa totemo shinsetsu desu. (That doctor is very kind.)
Answer: ๅป่ (isha) -
ใใฎ__ (eye) ใฏ็ฒใใพใใใ
Kono __ wa tsukaremashita. (These eyes are tired.)
Answer: ็ฎ (me) -
่ถณใ็ใใฎใงใ__ (hospital) ใซ่กใใพใใ
Ashi ga itai node, __ ni ikimasu. (Because my foot hurts, I go to the hospital.)
Answer: ็ ้ข (byลin) โ note: ็ ้ข uses ็ (sick/ill), not ๅป, but it's the standard word for hospital.
Summary and Next Step
You've learned 8 essential N4 kanji for body and health: ไฝ (body), ็ฎ (eye), ๅฃ (mouth), ๆ (hand), ่ถณ (foot/leg), ่ณ (ear), ๅฟ (heart/mind), and ๅป (medicine/doctor). Practice reading them in signs, menus, or simple sentences. Next, try learning kanji for internal organs (like ่ = stomach, ่บ = lung) or for symptoms (like ็ = pain, ็ฑ = fever) to expand your health vocabulary.
Practice Drills
No interactive practices assigned to this lesson yet.
Lesson Materials
Vocabulary (0)
No vocabulary in this lesson.
Grammar (0)
No grammar rules in this lesson.
Kanji (24)
Kana (0)
No kana characters in this lesson.