Skip to content
上
jō
Why a jacket, a boss, and this month's sales all carry 上
A line drawn on the ground, with something resting on the upper side of it.
Japanese
目
mok
The eye inside both "goal" and "list"
A single eye fixed on one point and not coming off it.
Korean
5 uses
水
su
One stream running through tap water, hot water, and flood
A stream running along the low ground and pooling somewhere.
Korean
5 uses
下
ge
Why socks, a subordinate, and being bad at cooking all carry 下
A drawn line, with something lying underneath it.
Japanese
火
hwa
Fire in the building, fire in the chest
A flame catching at one point, climbing upward, and jumping sideways to whatever is next.
Korean
5 uses
中
chū
One dot in the middle, from "in a meeting" to a used car
A square frame with a rod driven straight through its middle.
Japanese
山
san
The lump of earth you climb, descend, and dig into
Flat ground swelling up into one mass you have to climb up and back down.
Korean
5 uses
外
gai
One step outside the circle, from foreign countries to taking your glasses off
A circle drawn on the ground, with something set down outside it.
Japanese
前
mae
The side your face points, from "three days ago" to your name
A person standing still, with one step already placed on the side their face is turned toward.
Japanese
天
cheon
Ceiling and genius both come from overhead
Everything spread out above a person's head, past where a hand can reach.
Korean
5 uses
後
go
One step behind the back, from "afternoon" to the new junior
Someone following one step behind the back of the person who went ahead.
Japanese
地
ji
One floor holding up basement, map, and earthquake
The floor spread out under your feet, carrying everything that stands on it.
Korean
5 uses
出
shutsu
One arrow heading out, from the exit to a memory
Something held inside crosses the boundary and slips out into the open.
Japanese
家
ga
There is a house inside "painter" and "expert"
One roof covering a group of people, and the same daily living repeating underneath it.
Korean
5 uses
入
nyū
One arrow heading in, from a hospital stay to "I like it"
Something outside crosses the boundary, slips in, and settles there.
Japanese
學
hak
The character sitting in school, student, and tuition
Watching someone do a thing, copying it, and working it into your own hands.
Korean
5 uses
立
ritsu
One upright body, from "national" to "from the customer's position"
A body with both feet planted, standing perfectly upright and unwavering.
Japanese
日
il
One rise and set of the sun — that is a day
One block of time from the sun coming up to the sun going down: light once, then dark.
Korean
5 uses
月
wol
One waxing and waning of the moon makes a month
A thin moon filling out to round and thinning again: one full turn.
Korean
5 uses
行
kō
One line moving forward, from a bank to a trend
Footprints on a road, running forward one after another without a break.
Japanese
年
nyeon
One crop ripens and a year has passed
A sprout growing, ripening, being cut, and a new sprout coming up in the same spot: one big turn.
Korean
5 uses
見
ken
One thing taken into the eye, from an opinion to a hospital visit
One large eye taking in whatever stands before it, exactly as it is.
Japanese
気
ki
One invisible current, from the weather to popularity
Steam rising off a pot: an unseen current flowing and spreading.
Japanese
分
bun
Time, meat, and mood all get cut by this character
A line cut across a lump so it falls into two pieces.
Korean
5 uses