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Kotomora

馬

horse

JLPTN3StatusJōyō · grade 2FrequencyTop 1,000Strokes10

Readings

On'yomi

  • バ

Kun'yomi

  • うま
  • うま-
  • ま

Nanori

  • た
  • ばん
  • め
  • も

Meaning

馬 centers on the animal horse. It is used directly for the animal and as a component in characters related to horses or riding.

Most common words using 馬

20 of 507
  • 馬鹿ばか
    N3

    idiot; moron; fool

  • 馬うま
    N4

    horse

  • 競馬けいば
    N2

    horse racing

  • 群馬ぐんま

    Gunma (prefecture)

  • 馬場ばば

    riding ground; racecourse; racetrack

  • 出馬しゅつば

    running (for election); coming forward as a candidate

  • 馬力ばりき

    horsepower; hp

  • 馬車ばしゃ

    coach (horse-drawn); carriage; wagon; cart

  • 馬券ばけん

    betting ticket; betting slip

  • 馬身ばしん

    horse's length

  • 乗馬じょうば

    horse riding; horseback riding; mounting a horse

  • 驢馬ろば

    donkey; ass

  • 馬鹿げるばかげる

    to be foolish; to be stupid; to be ridiculous

  • 馬鹿馬鹿しいばかばかしい
    N2

    absurd; ridiculous; silly; ludicrous; nonsensical; asinine; foolish

  • 白馬はくば

    white horse

  • 騎馬きば

    horse riding; horseback riding; horseback rider

  • 司馬しば

    Minister of War (Zhou dynasty China)

  • 牡馬ぼば

    male horse

  • 馬尼剌マニラ

    Manila (Philippines)

  • 牝馬ひんば

    mare; filly

Explore all words using 馬 →

Study

Etymology

馬 is a pictograph of a horse, with the modern form showing a stylized head, mane, body, and four legs represented by the four dots at the bottom.

Meaning mnemonic

The top horizontal stroke is the horse's mane, the vertical strokes its head and neck, and the four dots at the bottom are its galloping legs. Together, 馬 is a horse.

Reading mnemonic

For バ, imagine a horse neighing with a loud 'baa' sound: baa -> バ, like a horse calling out.