粍

millimeter, (kokuji)

Strokes10

Readings

On'yomi

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Kun'yomi

ミリ
ミリメートル

Meaning

粍 is a Japanese-made kanji (kokuji) that represents the millimeter, combining the concepts of rice (米) and hair (毛) to suggest a very small unit of length.

Study

Etymology

粍 is a kokuji created in Japan by combining 米 (rice, here representing the metric system) and 毛 (hair, suggesting something very thin) to denote the millimeter.

Meaning mnemonic

Imagine a single grain of rice (米) next to a strand of hair (毛) — both are tiny, and together they represent the millimeter, a very small measurement.

Reading mnemonic

For ミリ, think of a tiny millimeter mark on a ruler: "me really?" (ミリ) — it's so small you can barely see it.