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Kotomora

蜷

an edible river snail

FrequencyTop 5,000Strokes14

Readings

On'yomi

  • ケン

Kun'yomi

  • にな

Meaning

蜷 centers on a specific edible river snail. The meaning is narrow and concrete, referring to the creature itself.

Most common words using 蜷

  • 海蜷うみにな

    many-formed cerith (Batillaria multiformis)

  • 牙海蜷きばうみにな

    mud creeper (Terebralia palustris)

  • 疣海蜷いぼうみにな

    Batillaria zonalis (small sandy shore snail)

  • 細海蜷ほそうみにな

    Japanese false cerith (Batillaria cumingii)

Explore all words using 蜷 →

Study

Etymology

蜷 combines 虫 (insect/creature) with 卷, which likely contributes the sound. The character specifically denotes a type of snail.

Meaning mnemonic

The left side 虫 signals a small creature, and the right side 卷 looks like a coiled shape. Picture a snail curled up inside its shell: 蜷 is that edible river snail.

Reading mnemonic

For ケン, imagine Ken the snail collector picking up a coiled river snail: Ken -> ケン, and the snail curls up in his hand.