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JLPT N45画 · 5 strokesradical 木grade 1freq #10Kanken level 10JFT-Basic vocabularyJōyō kanji

book, origin, main

On'yomi (音読み)

  • ホン
  • ボン
  • ポン

Kun'yomi (訓読み)

  • もと.

Mnemonic

The tree of knowledge stands tall, its trunk representing the main book, the source of all wisdom.

About this kanji

The kanji 本 primarily means "book," but it can also refer to "origin" or something "main." It is often used as a noun, like in 本屋 (ほんや), which means "bookstore," or 本当 (ほんとう), meaning "true." Another common compound is 日本 (にほん), which stands for "Japan." In everyday conversation, 本 can indicate not just physical books, but also ideas of authenticity and origin, as in questions about what is true or the source of information. A quick note is that 本日 (ほんじつ) means "today," emphasizing its use to denote the present time.

Built from

Example sentences

  • この本は面白い。

    This book is interesting.

Meanings across languages

English
book, origin, main
Tiếng Việt
sách, gốc, chính
日本語
本, もと
한국어
책
中文
书
id
buku
th
หนังสือ
es
libro
fr
livre
de
Buch
pt
livro

Common compounds

  • 日本にほんJapan
  • 本屋ほんやbookstore
  • 本当ほんとうtrue, real
  • 本日ほんじつtoday

Words using this kanji

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