LESSON NOTES

Introduction to Japanese Kanji

#3
Woman Radical ⼥

CONTENTS
2 Grammar

# 3
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GRAMMAR

The Focus of This Lesson is: the Woman Radical

Take a look at these kanji characters. Can you guess what they mean?
⼥、好、姉、妹、
⼥
This particular radical is called...おんなへん (onnahen).
It's otherwise known as the "woman radical" and it's used in some of the most common of
all kanji. Let's take a look at it in more detail.

Meaning

In the previous lesson, you learned that some radicals can be a kanji character all on their
own.
This radical is one such example.
The meaning behind this particular kanji, ⼥, is "woman" or "feminine."
In the previous lesson, you learned that we can deduce the meaning of kanji characters by
identifying the radicals in them.
These characters 好、姉、妹、 all have the "woman" radical, so we know that the meaning
of each kanji character here, must relate to "woman" or "feminine" in some way.
好 means "like," the third means "older sister," and the fourth means "younger sister." It
has the "woman" radical paired with this second character meaning "child."
Traditionally, it's *desirable* that a woman bears a child, as it's an extra pair of hands to
help the community.
This desirability is expressed in this kanji, and so the meaning of this character is "like."
姉 has the "woman" radical paired with the character for "small city."
A woman going to the city, where most markets are, is traditionally the job of the older
sister, and so the meaning of this kanji means "older sister."
妹 has the woman radical paired with another radical which means "not yet."
Someone who is "not yet a woman" alludes to a young woman, hence the meaning of
"younger sister."
Can you see how the meaning all of these kanji characters, which use the "woman" radical,
relate to "woman" or "feminine" in some way? By identifying the radicals in kanji, we can
figure out the meaning of the character itself.

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Common positions

The woman radical most commonly appears in the left position, as can be seen in the
original examples. Of all the kanji that use the woman radical, this is where you'll most
likely encounter them. So keep your eyes peeled!
Sometimes, you may find it at the bottom position, known as the "foot" position, as seen in
*these* examples, though this is far less common.
Just remember the left and foot positions, and you'll be able to identify the "woman" radical.

Stroke Order

Writing the "woman" radical is very simple, there are only three strokes.
The first stroke, starts from the upper center and then curves down to the left where it
bends and goes all the way to the right.
The second stroke, starts under the horizontal line and curves from right to left.
The third and final stroke, is a horizontal line going from the top left to the top right.
The same thing happens when it's in the "foot" position -- except that it's squished
vertically.
And that's it! You're done!

Common Readings

In the previous lesson, you learned that there are multiple readings for a kanji character,
and which reading you use is mainly based on context.
The different types of readings can be broken down into two categories: on and kun
readings. The on reading mimics the Chinese pronunciation, while the kun reading is the
revised Japanese version.
The on reading is usually used in compound kanji words.
Whereas the kun reading is more commonly used in stand-alone kanji, or kanji that has
dangling hiragana characters.
When the woman radical is on its own, it can be read as...
ジョ for the on reading
and おんな for the kun reading
In the case of the original examples, common readings are...

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コウ、この、す
For the kanji meaning "like"
シ、あね、ねえ
For the kanji meaning "older sister." And...
マイ、いもうと
for the kanji meaning "younger sister."

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