chopsticks

About this kanji

The kanji 箸 (はし) primarily means "chopsticks" and is commonly used as a noun. It appears in several compounds, such as 割り箸 (わりばし), which refers to disposable chopsticks, and 火箸 (ひばし), meaning long metal chopsticks used for handling charcoal, particularly in cooking. Another example is 箸箱 (はしばこ), which is a case to store chopsticks. Notably, the kun'yomi reading はし is often used when talking specifically about chopsticks in everyday situations, while the on'yomi readings like チョ and チャク can be found in more formal contexts. When using chopsticks, it's helpful to remember that they have cultural significance in Japan, so learning proper etiquette is also important.

Example sentences

• 箸を使うのが得意になった。

  I've become good at using chopsticks.

Meanings across languages

English

chopsticks

Tiếng Việt

đũa

日本語

箸

한국어

젓가락

中文

筷子

id

sumpit

th

ตะเกียบ

es

palillos

fr

bâtonnets

de

Essstäbchen

pt

hashi

Common compounds

• 割り箸わりばしdispensable chopsticks, throwaway chopsticks, chopsticks (hand game)
• 火箸ひばしlong metal chopsticks (for handling charcoal, esp. in a brazier), fire tongs
• 箸箱はしばこchopstick case
• 菜箸さいばしlong chopsticks (for cooking, serving, etc.)
• 杉箸すぎばしchopsticks made of cedar
• 匕箸ひちょspoon and chopsticks
• 箸袋はしぶくろchopstick envelope, chopstick wrapper, paper envelope in which chopsticks are presented
• 空箸そらばしtouching a food with one's chopsticks, then removing them without taking it (a breach of etiquette)