coffin, casket
On'yomi (音読み)
- カン
Kun'yomi (訓読み)
—
About this kanji
The kanji 「棺」 primarily means "coffin" or "casket," which refers to the box where a deceased person is placed for burial or cremation. This kanji is usually found in compound words rather than used alone. Common compounds include 「石棺」 (せっかん), meaning "sarcophagus," and 「棺桶」 (かんおけ), which is a direct term for "coffin." Other phrases like 「出棺」 (しゅっかん), meaning "carrying out a coffin," and 「入棺」 (にゅうかん), meaning "placing in the coffin," are also associated with funerary practices. Note that while this kanji might seem somber, it relates to an important aspect of cultural traditions around death.
Example sentences
彼は棺に横たわっていた。
He was lying in the coffin.
Meanings across languages
- English
- coffin, casket
- Tiếng Việt
- quan tài
- 日本語
- 棺
- 한국어
- 관
- 中文
- 棺材
- id
- peti mati
- th
- โลงศพ
- es
- ataúd
- fr
- cercueil
- de
- Sarg
- pt
- caixão
Common compounds
- 石棺せっかんsarcophagus, stone coffin
- 棺桶かんおけcoffin, casket
- 出棺しゅっかんcarrying out a coffin, funeral procession
- 入棺にゅうかんplacing in the coffin
- 納棺のうかんplacing a body in a coffin
- 寝棺ねかんcoffin, casket
- 甕棺かめかんburial urn (often two-storey), funerary urn
- 木棺もっかんwooden coffin
Want to actually learn this kanji?
The dictionary is one view. The Kanji 360 app wraps every character with mnemonic images, audio readings, stroke-order animation, story context, and SRS scheduling — free to start on iPhone, iPad, and Android.