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JLPT N28画 · 8 strokesradical 氵grade 5freq #2450

reduce, decrease, diminish

On'yomi (音読み)

  • ゲン

Kun'yomi (訓読み)

  • へ.る
  • へ.らす

Mnemonic

As the water (氵) level diminishes (減), the moon (月) appears larger, reminding you of the reduction in the tide.

About this kanji

The kanji 減, pronounced as "gen" in on'yomi and "heru" or "herasu" in kun'yomi, primarily means to reduce or decrease. It is often used in nouns but can also appear in verbs. Common compounds include 減少 (げんしょう, genshou), meaning decrease, 減税 (げんぜい, gentzei), which refers to a tax reduction, and 減速 (げんそく, gensoku), meaning deceleration. These words are useful in various contexts, like economics or transportation. A quick note: while 減 often refers to a reduction in quantity, it is essential to pair it with a noun that specifies what is being reduced.

Built from

Example sentences

  • 毎日運動して体重が減った。

    I lost weight by exercising every day.

Meanings across languages

English
reduce, decrease, diminish
Tiếng Việt
giảm, suy giảm
日本語
減る, 減少
한국어
줄이다, 감소시키다
中文
减少, 降
id
mengurangi, menurun
th
ลด, ลดลง
es
reducir, disminuir
fr
réduire, diminuer
de
reduzieren, verringern
pt
reduzir, diminuir

Common compounds

  • 減少げんしょうdecrease, reduction
  • 減税げんぜいtax reduction
  • 減点げんてんpenalty points, deduction
  • 減速げんそくdeceleration

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