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Kotomora

檻

pen, corral, cell, jail

Strokes19

Readings

On'yomi

  • カン

Kun'yomi

  • おり
  • おばしま
  • てすり

Meaning

檻 centers on a confined enclosure for holding living things: a pen or corral for animals, or a jail cell for people.

Most common words using 檻

  • 檻おり
    N1

    cage; pen; (jail) cell

  • 折檻せっかん

    physical punishment; beating; smacking; spanking

  • 籠鳥檻猿ろうちょうかんえん

    denied freedom (of how to live one's life); living like a caged bird

  • 象の檻ぞうのおり

    elephant cage; Wullenweber antenna; large circular antenna array used for radio direction finding

Explore all words using 檻 →

Study

Etymology

檻 combines 木 (wood) with 監, which likely contributes the sound and the idea of overseeing or enclosing. The character suggests a wooden enclosure for containment.

Meaning mnemonic

The left side is wood 木, and the right side 監 looks like a watchful eye over a container. Picture a wooden pen where animals are kept under watch.

Reading mnemonic

For カン, imagine a can made of wood that serves as a tiny jail: can -> カン, and the wooden can holds the prisoner.