豻
prison, kind of wild dog
Strokes10
Readings
On'yomi
- カン
Kun'yomi
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Meaning
豻 centers on a wild canine, specifically a kind of wild dog, and by extension a prison, likely from the idea of a cage or confinement associated with such an animal.
Study
Etymology
豻 combines the beast radical 豸 with 干, which likely served as a phonetic component. The character originally referred to a type of wild dog, and the prison meaning may derive from the idea of a cage or confinement.
Meaning mnemonic
A wild beast (豸) with a shield (干) — imagine a fierce wild dog guarding a prison, its cage-like den.
Reading mnemonic
For カン, picture a can (カン) being used as a makeshift cage for the wild dog: can -> カン, and the beast is trapped inside.