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Kotomora

抔

and so forth

Strokes7

Readings

On'yomi

  • ホウ
  • ハイ

Kun'yomi

  • など
  • すく.う

Meaning

抔 is a rare kanji used to express the idea of 'and so forth' or 'etc.', listing things in a non-exhaustive way. Its standalone meaning is narrow and primarily grammatical.

Study

Etymology

The exact historical development of 抔 is uncertain. It visually combines 扌 (hand) with 不, but the component relationship and original meaning are unclear.

Meaning mnemonic

The hand radical 扌 beside 不 (not) suggests a hand waving away specifics, as if saying 'not just this, but that and so forth'.

Reading mnemonic

For ホウ, imagine a hand waving and saying 'and so forth' while holding a hoe: hoe -> ホウ, as the hand lists things non-exhaustively.