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Kotomora

哺

nurse, suckle

StatusJōyō · secondary schoolFrequencyTop 5,000Strokes10

Readings

On'yomi

  • ホ

Kun'yomi

  • はぐく.む
  • ふく.む

Meaning

哺 centers on feeding an infant or young animal directly from the body: nursing or suckling. It is specifically about providing milk, not general feeding.

Most common words using 哺

  • 哺乳類ほにゅうるい

    mammal; mammalian

  • 哺乳ほにゅう

    suckling; nursing; lactation

  • 反哺はんぽ

    caring for one's parents in return

  • 哺ほ

    holding food in one's mouth; food held in one's mouth

  • 哺を吐くほをはく

    to be eager to meet someone

  • 哺乳児ほにゅうじ

    infant at the breast; suckling baby

  • 哺乳動物ほにゅうどうぶつ

    mammal

  • 哺乳器ほにゅうき

    baby's bottle

  • 哺乳器官ほにゅうきかん

    mamma (milk-secreting organ of female mammals)

  • 哺乳形類ほにゅうけいるい

    Mammaliaformes

  • 哺乳期ほにゅうき

    lactation period

  • 哺乳瓶ほにゅうびん

    baby bottle; nursing bottle; feeding bottle

  • 哺乳綱ほにゅうこう

    Mammalia

  • 哺乳類型爬虫類ほにゅうるいがたはちゅうるい

    mammal-like reptile

  • 哺乳類学ほにゅうるいがく

    mammalogy

  • 哺育ほいく

    nursing (esp. an animal); suckling; (feeding and) raising

  • 握髪吐哺あくはつとほ

    (a statesman making) extraordinary efforts to find and employ capable persons (persons of great wisdom)

  • 日本哺乳動物卵子学会にっぽんほにゅうどうぶつらんしがっかい

    Japanese Society of Mammalian Ova Research; JSMOR

Explore all words using 哺 →

Study

Etymology

哺 combines 口 (mouth) with 甫, which likely contributes the sound and may relate to spreading or extending, suggesting the act of feeding from mouth to mouth or providing nourishment.

Meaning mnemonic

A mouth 口 beside 甫, which looks like a nursing infant with a rounded body and a small head. Picture a baby's mouth latching on to nurse.

Reading mnemonic

For ホ, imagine a mother softly saying 'ho' to soothe her nursing baby: ho -> ホ, and the mouth 口 feeds the child.