琺
enamel
Strokes12
Readings
On'yomi
- ホウ
Kun'yomi
—
Meaning
琺 centers on enamel, a glassy coating fused onto metal or ceramics for decoration or protection.
Most common words using 琺
Study
Etymology
琺 is a phono-semantic compound: the jade radical 王 (玉) suggests a precious or glassy substance, while 法 (ホウ) provides the sound. The character was likely created to represent enamel.
Meaning mnemonic
The jade radical 王 hints at a smooth, glassy surface, and 法 (law) can be imagined as a rule for coating metal. Together they form 琺, a beautiful enamel finish.
Reading mnemonic
For ホウ, imagine a craftsman carefully applying enamel while saying 'Hold on, this needs to be perfect!' The 'ho' in 'hold' cues ホウ, and the careful work matches the delicate enamel process.