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Kotomora

酌

bar-tending, serving sake, the host, draw (water), ladle, scoop, pump

JLPTN1StatusJōyō · secondary schoolFrequencyTop 5,000Strokes10

Readings

On'yomi

  • シャク

Kun'yomi

  • く.む

Meaning

酌 centers on the act of pouring or drawing liquid, especially in a social or ceremonial context. The core idea is serving drinks—typically sake—as a host, which extends naturally to drawing water, ladling, or pumping liquid.

Most common words using 酌

20 of 24
  • 晩酌ばんしゃく

    drink at home with one's evening meal; dinner-time drink

  • 酌量しゃくりょう

    taking into consideration; making allowances

  • 酌しゃく

    pouring alcohol

  • 斟酌しんしゃく

    taking into consideration; making allowances (for)

  • 媒酌人ばいしゃくにん

    matchmaker; go-between

  • 媒酌ばいしゃく

    matchmaking; acting as a go-between

  • 情状酌量じょうじょうしゃくりょう

    taking the extenuating circumstances into consideration

  • 酌むくむ
    N2

    to pour (sake); to serve; to drink (together)

  • お酌おしゃく

    pouring alcohol

  • 参酌さんしゃく

    comparison and choosing the good; consultation; referring to

  • 対酌たいしゃく

    sitting across from each other and drinking together

  • 小酌しょうしゃく

    drinking together in a small group

  • 意を酌むいをくむ

    to enter into a person's feelings; to guess what someone feels (using one's intuition)

  • 手酌てじゃく

    helping oneself to a drink; pouring one's own drink

  • 手酌酒てじゃくさけ

    pouring one's own drinks; drinking alone

  • 未練未酌みれんみしゃく

    regret and sympathy; having lingering attachment and sympathy toward someone

  • 未練未酌がないみれんみしゃくがない

    unsympathetic and inconsiderate; coldhearted

  • 浅酌低唱せんしゃくていしょう

    getting slightly intoxicated and humming a tune

  • 独酌どくしゃく

    drinking alone; solitary drinking

  • 献酌けんしゃく

    offering a drink

Explore all words using 酌 →

Study

Etymology

酌 combines 酉 (a wine vessel) with 勺 (a ladle or scoop), suggesting the act of ladling wine from a vessel. This is a standard semantic-component explanation.

Meaning mnemonic

The left side 酉 is a sake jar, and the right side 勺 is a ladle. Picture a host dipping a ladle into a jar to serve sake—that's the essence of 酌: pouring and serving drinks.

Reading mnemonic

For シャク, imagine a host serving sake with a *shack*-like ladle: the sound of the ladle hitting the jar is 'shack' -> シャク, and the host pours drinks.