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Kotomora

誰

who, someone, somebody

StatusJōyō · secondary schoolFrequencyTop 2,000Strokes15

Readings

On'yomi

  • スイ

Kun'yomi

  • だれ
  • たれ
  • た

Meaning

誰 centers on questioning or referring to an unspecified person: asking who someone is, or talking about an unknown someone or somebody.

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Etymology

誰 combines 言 (speech, words) with 隹, which likely contributes the sound. The character expresses the idea of asking or speaking about an unidentified person.

Meaning mnemonic

The left side 言 represents words or speech, and the right side 隹 looks like a bird. Imagine asking 'who?' while pointing at a bird you can't identify: 誰 is the question word for an unknown person.

Reading mnemonic

For スイ, picture a detective asking 'who?' while sipping a drink: sip -> スイ, and the question hangs in the air.