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Kotomora

全

whole, entire, all, complete, fulfill

JLPTN3StatusJōyō · grade 3FrequencyTop 100Strokes6

Readings

On'yomi

  • ゼン

Kun'yomi

  • まった.く
  • すべ.て

Nanori

  • たけ
  • まさ

Meaning

全 centers on the idea of completeness: something that is whole, entire, or all-encompassing. The sense of 'fulfill' naturally extends from making something complete or bringing it to its full state.

Most common words using 全

24 of 727
  • 全部ぜんぶ
    N5

    all; entire; whole; altogether

  • 全てすべて
    N3

    everything; all; the whole

  • 全ぜん
    N3

    all; whole; entire; complete; total; pan-

  • 完全かんぜん
    N3

    perfect; complete

  • 全員ぜんいん
    N3

    all members; all hands; everyone; everybody; whole crew

  • 安全あんぜん
    N4

    safety; security

  • 全くまったく
    N3

    really; truly; entirely; completely; wholly; perfectly

  • 全国ぜんこく
    N3

    the whole country

  • 全然ぜんぜん
    N5

    (not) at all; (not) in the slightest

  • 全体ぜんたい
    N3

    whole; entirety

  • 全力ぜんりょく
    N1

    all one's power (strength, energy, efforts); one's utmost

  • 全身ぜんしん
    N2

    whole (body); full-length (e.g. portrait)

  • 全面ぜんめん

    whole surface; entire

  • 全般ぜんぱん
    N2

    (the) whole

  • 健全けんぜん
    N1

    healthy; sound; wholesome

  • 全滅ぜんめつ
    N1

    total destruction; complete destruction; annihilation; being wiped out

  • 全米ぜんべい

    all-America; pan-American; all of America

  • 全長ぜんちょう

    full length; total length; overall length

  • 全額ぜんがく

    total; full amount; sum

  • 全日本ぜんにほん

    all of Japan; the whole of Japan

  • 万全ばんぜん
    N1

    perfection; flawlessness

  • 保全ほぜん

    preservation; conservation; maintenance; integrity

  • 全域ぜんいき
    N1

    the whole area; the entire region; all parts (of)

  • 不全ふぜん

    partial; incomplete; imperfect

Explore all words using 全 →

Study

Etymology

全 is thought to combine 入 (enter) and 王 (jewel), suggesting a jewel brought inside to be kept whole and complete. The modern form preserves this structure.

Meaning mnemonic

The top looks like a roof (入) covering a jewel (王) underneath. Imagine a precious jewel kept safe and complete under a roof: nothing is missing, it is whole and entire.

Reading mnemonic

For ゼン, picture a Zen garden where every stone and raked line is perfectly complete: Zen -> ゼン, and the whole garden is in harmony.