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Kotomora

串

spit, skewer

StatusJōyō · secondary schoolFrequencyTop 5,000Strokes7

Readings

On'yomi

  • カン
  • ケン
  • セン

Kun'yomi

  • くし
  • つらぬ.く

Meaning

串 centers on piercing and threading things together: a spit or skewer that runs through food, and by extension the act of skewering or piercing through.

Most common words using 串

20 of 28
  • 串くし

    spit; skewer

  • 串カツくしカツ

    kushikatsu; deep-fried skewered meat and vegetables

  • 串刺しくしざし

    skewering; skewered food

  • 串焼きくしやき

    grilling on a skewer; spit-roasting

  • 玉串たまぐし

    branch of a sacred tree (esp. sakaki) with paper or cotton strips attached (used as an offering)

  • 串刺し検索くしざしけんさく

    federated search; cross-database search; multi-database search; searching multiple databases at once with a single query

  • 串団子くしだんご

    skewered dango

  • 串打ちくしうち

    skewering (fish, meat, etc.; for the purpose of grilling)

  • 串揚げくしあげ

    kushiage; deep-fried skewered meat and vegetables

  • 串柿くしがき

    dried persimmons on a skewer

  • 串鯖くしさば

    mackerel skewer

  • 侯串ごうぐし

    wooden target holder (in archery)

  • 太玉串ふとたまぐし

    branch of a sacred tree (esp. sakaki) with paper or cotton strips attached (used as a Shinto offering)

  • 幕串まくぐし

    curtain pillar; curtain stake

  • 幣串へいぐし

    staff to which shide are attached to make a go-hei

  • 横串よこぐし

    skewering horizontally (e.g. fish); skewer with meat skewered on horizontally

  • 横串検索よこぐしけんさく

    federated search

  • 焼き串やきぐし

    skewer; spit

  • 牛串ぎゅうくし

    skewered beef

  • 玉串奉奠たまぐしほうてん

    reverentially offering a branch of the sacred tree

Explore all words using 串 →

Study

Etymology

串 is a pictograph of a skewer piercing through two objects, represented by the two 口 shapes stacked on a vertical line. The modern form preserves this image clearly.

Meaning mnemonic

See the vertical line as a skewer piercing through two pieces of food (the two 口 shapes). 串 is a spit or skewer.

Reading mnemonic

For カン, imagine a can of skewered food: can -> カン, and the skewer pierces through the can's contents.