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Kotomora

城

castle

JLPTN2StatusJōyō · grade 4FrequencyTop 1,000Strokes9

Readings

On'yomi

  • ジョウ
  • セイ

Kun'yomi

  • しろ

Nanori

  • いく
  • がき
  • き
  • くに

Meaning

城 centers on a fortified stronghold: a castle, typically built with earthworks and walls.

Most common words using 城

20 of 133
  • 城しろ
    N3

    castle

  • 茨城いばらき

    Ibaraki (prefecture)

  • 宮城きゅうじょう

    Imperial Palace (esp. from 1888 to 1946)

  • 宮城みやぎ

    Miyagi (prefecture)

  • 城壁じょうへき

    castle wall; town walls; defensive wall; rampart

  • 山城やましろ

    Yamashiro (former province located in the south of present-day Kyoto Prefecture)

  • 山城やまじろ

    mountain castle

  • 金城きんじょう

    impregnable castle

  • 城主じょうしゅ

    lord of a castle

  • 城下町じょうかまち

    castle town; city in Japan that developed around the castle of a feudal lord

  • 都城とじょう

    castle town

  • 長城ちょうじょう

    long (defensive) wall

  • 城塞じょうさい

    fortress; stronghold; citadel

  • 城跡しろあと

    castle site; ruins of a castle

  • 城門じょうもん

    castle gate

  • 古城こじょう

    old castle; old fortress

  • 築城ちくじょう

    castle construction; building a castle; fortification

  • 城内じょうない

    inside of a castle

  • 江戸城えどじょう

    Edo Castle (residence of the Shogun during the Edo period, now the site of the Tokyo Imperial Palace)

  • 城下じょうか
    N1

    land near a castle

Explore all words using 城 →

Study

Etymology

城 combines 土 (earth) with 成, which likely contributes the sound and the idea of completion, suggesting earthworks that form a completed fortification.

Meaning mnemonic

The left side is earth 土, and the right side 成 suggests something built up. Picture earth piled high to form the walls of a castle.

Reading mnemonic

For ジョウ, imagine a grand castle with a showy gate: show -> ジョウ, and the earth walls make it a fortress.