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Kotomora

腎

kidney

StatusJōyō · secondary schoolFrequencyTop 2,000Strokes13

Readings

On'yomi

  • ジン

Kun'yomi

—

Meaning

腎 centers on the kidney, the organ that filters and regulates fluids in the body.

Most common words using 腎

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Etymology

腎 combines 臤 (a phonetic component carrying the sound) with 月 (flesh/organ), indicating a body part related to the sound ジン. The exact historical development of 臤 is uncertain, but the character is a standard phono-semantic compound for 'kidney'.

Meaning mnemonic

The top part 臤 looks like a sturdy frame, and the bottom 月 is flesh. Picture a sturdy, bean-shaped organ made of flesh filtering your blood: that's the kidney.

Reading mnemonic

For ジン, imagine a kidney-shaped bottle of gin: gin -> ジン. The kidney filters your body like a bartender strains gin.