孔
cavity, hole, slit, very, great, exceedingly
Readings
On'yomi
- コウ
- ク
Kun'yomi
- あな
Nanori
- のり
Meaning
孔 centers on an opening or empty space: a cavity, hole, or slit. The senses "very," "great," and "exceedingly" are less common and likely arise from the idea of a hole being deep or extreme.
Most common words using 孔
20 of 114- 孔子こうし
Confucius
- 孔雀くじゃく
peafowl (incl. the male peacock, female peahen, and young peachick)
- 瞳孔どうこう
pupil (of the eye)
- 穿孔せんこう
perforation; punching; boring; drilling
- 多孔たこう
porous; open (weave)
- 鼻孔びこう
nostril; naris
- 気孔きこう
pore; stoma; stigma; vesicle
- インド孔雀インドくじゃく
Indian peafowl (Pavo cristatus); common peafowl; blue peafowl
- カード穿孔機構カードせんこうきこう
card punch
- カード穿孔装置カードせんこうそうち
card punch
- スポット穿孔機スポットせんこうき
spot punch
- テープ穿孔機構テープせんこうきこう
tape punch
- テープ穿孔装置テープせんこうそうち
tape punch
- パリピ孔明パリピこうめい
Ya Boy Kongming! (manga series)
- 乙女孔雀おとめくじゃく
Adiantum edgeworthii (species of maidenhair fern)
- 人孔じんこう
manhole
- 位置決め孔いちぎめこう
index hole
- 内孔ないこう
inner hole
- 単孔類たんこうるい
monotremes; Monotremata
- 卵円孔らんえんこう
foramen ovale; oval foramen of the fetal heart
Study
Etymology
孔 combines 子 (child) with 乚, which may represent a hole or opening. The exact historical development is uncertain, but the character likely depicts a child emerging from or passing through an opening.
Meaning mnemonic
A child 子 beside a curved hook 乚 that looks like a hole: imagine a child peeking through a cavity or slit.
Reading mnemonic
For コウ, picture a child shouting "coo!" through a hole: coo -> コウ, and the sound echoes in the cavity.