hungry, starve
On'yomi (音読み)
- キ
Kun'yomi (訓読み)
- う.える
About this kanji
The kanji 飢 means 'hungry' or 'to starve.' It is often used in verbs and nouns related to hunger and starvation. A common compound is 飢餓 (きが), which means 'starvation,' highlighting the severe lack of food. Another one is 飢え (うえ), which simply translates to 'hunger.' You can also encounter 飢饉 (ききん), meaning 'famine,' referring to widespread scarcity of food. The verb 飢える (うえる) means 'to starve,' and you might hear 飢え死に (うえじに), which refers to dying from starvation. Keep in mind that this kanji strongly conveys a sense of need and desperation, often used in serious contexts.
Example sentences
彼は飢えによる苦しみを知っている。
He knows the suffering of hunger.
Meanings across languages
- English
- hungry, starve
- Tiếng Việt
- đói
- 日本語
- 飢え
- 한국어
- 허기
- 中文
- 饥
- id
- lapar
- th
- หิว
- es
- hambre
- fr
- affamé
- de
- hungrig
- pt
- faminto
Common compounds
- 飢餓きがstarvation, famine, hunger
- 飢えうえhunger, starvation
- 飢饉ききんfamine, crop failure, chronic shortage (e.g. of water)
- 飢えるうえるto starve, to be famished, to be hungry
- 飢え死にうえじに(death from) starvation, starving to death
- 飢渇きかつhunger and thirst, starvation
- 飢寒きかんhunger and cold
- 飢民きみんstarving people
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