狹
narrow, contract, reduce, tight, limited
StatusJinmeiyō (variant)Strokes10
Readings
On'yomi
- キョウ
- コウ
Kun'yomi
- せま.い
- せば.める
- せば.まる
- さ
Meaning
狹 centers on restricted space or scope: something narrow, tight, or limited. The ideas of contracting and reducing are natural extensions of making something narrower or more confined.
Study
Etymology
狹 is the traditional form of 狭. It combines 犭 (a variant of 犬, dog) with 夾, which likely contributes the sound and the idea of being pressed from both sides, giving the sense of narrowness.
Meaning mnemonic
A dog 犭 squeezed between two people 夾 (the shape suggests something pinched from both sides) illustrates a narrow, tight space.
Reading mnemonic
For キョウ, imagine a narrow Kyoto alley where a dog is squeezed between two buildings: Kyoto -> キョウ, and the tight space matches the kanji's meaning.