direction, side, method, person
On'yomi (音読み)
- ホウ
- ボウ
Kun'yomi (訓読み)
- かた
- かた.る
- かた.い
About this kanji
The kanji 「方」 primarily means direction or side, but it can also refer to a method or person. It is often used as a noun. For instance, in the compound 方向 (ほうこう), it means 'direction', while 方法 (ほうほう) translates to 'method'. You might also encounter 方言 (ほうげん), which means 'dialect', referring to regional varieties of language. Another interesting compound is 方々 (かたがた), meaning 'people' or 'various individuals'. A key usage note is that while 方 can refer to directions, it can also signify a way or manner of doing something, highlighting its versatility in different contexts.
Example sentences
先生の方が親切です。
The teacher is kinder.
Meanings across languages
- English
- direction, side, method, person
- Tiếng Việt
- phương hướng, phương pháp, người
- 日本語
- 方向, 方法, 方
- 한국어
- 방향
- 中文
- 方向
- id
- arah
- th
- ทิศทาง
- es
- dirección
- fr
- direction
- de
- Richtung
- pt
- direção
Common compounds
- 方向ほうこうdirection
- 方法ほうほうmethod, way
- 方言ほうげんdialect
- 方々かたがたpeople, everyone
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.