猾
crafty
Strokes13
Readings
On'yomi
- カツ
Kun'yomi
- わるがしこ.い
Meaning
猾 centers on cunning that is sly and underhanded: a crafty, wily nature that uses cleverness for selfish or deceptive ends.
Most common words using 猾
Study
Etymology
猾 combines 犭 (dog/beast) with 骨 (bone), likely suggesting a beast that is cunning to the bone. The exact historical development is uncertain, but the phono-semantic structure is plausible.
Meaning mnemonic
A beast (犭) that is crafty down to its bones (骨): imagine a sly fox or wolf whose every bone is filled with cunning.
Reading mnemonic
For カツ, picture a crafty cat (cats -> カツ) that is sly and always gets what it wants. The cat's cunning matches the kanji's meaning.