鬚
beard, mustache
Readings
On'yomi
- シュ
- ス
Kun'yomi
- ひげ
Meaning
鬚 centers on facial hair: a beard or mustache. The two meanings are closely related as types of hair growing on the face.
Most common words using 鬚
- 大葉蛇の鬚おおばじゃのひげ
Ophiopogon planiscapus (flowering plant in the Asparagaceae family)
- 大鬚回りおおひげまわり
Volvox (genus of green algae)
- 有鬚動物ゆうしゅどうぶつ
pogonophoran (any worm of phylum Pogonophora)
- 脚鬚きゃくしゅ
pedipalp
- 虎鬚を編むこしゅをあむ
to do something foolhardy; to braid a tiger's whiskers
- 蛇の鬚じゃのひげ
dwarf mondo grass (Ophiopogon japonicus)
- 触鬚しょくしゅ
barbel; barb; palp; palpus
- 顎鬚海豹あごひげあざらし
bearded seal (Erignathus barbatus)
- 鬚虫ひげむし
beard worm (any worm of phylum Pogonophora)
- 鬚髯しゅぜん
mustache and beard
- 鬚鯨ひげくじら
baleen whale; whalebone whale; mysticete
- 鯨鬚くじらひげ
whalebone; baleen
Study
Etymology
鬚 combines 髟 (hair) with 須 (beard, mustache), reinforcing the idea of facial hair. 須 itself originally depicted a face with hair, so the compound emphasizes hair on the face.
Meaning mnemonic
The top 髟 means hair, and the bottom 須 looks like a face with hair strokes. Together they show a bearded face: 鬚 is a beard or mustache.
Reading mnemonic
For シュ, imagine a shoe brush shaped like a beard: you use it to brush your beard, and shoe -> シュ.