also: きり
Refers to the surface quality of skin, fabric, or other materials; often used in beauty and craft contexts.
This fabric has a fine texture and feels good against the skin.
detail; fineness
Only with reading きめ
Used in expressions like きめ細かい to mean meticulous attention to detail; restricted to the reading きめ.
See also: きめ細か (きめこまか)
Her skin texture is so smooth and even, it's beautiful.
She has smooth-textured skin.
This desk has a beautiful wood grain.
I chose wood with a fine grain.
His work is very detailed.
The meticulous service is well-received.
Using this cosmetic makes your skin texture finer.
This table has a beautiful wood grain.
I use a serum to even out my skin's texture.
木目 (もくめ) is the more formal or technical reading for wood grain, while 木目 (きめ) is the everyday word that also covers texture and detail.
質感 is a more formal, descriptive term for the perceived texture of a material, while きめ focuses on the fineness or coarseness of the surface itself.
触感 emphasizes the tactile sensation when touching something, whereas きめ describes the surface's inherent grain or fineness.
決め (from 決める, meaning 'decision' or 'fixing') is a homophone of きめ 'texture/grain' but is a completely unrelated noun.
Kana spelling is standard for all senses; usually written in kana.
Kanji spelling used especially for the wood-grain sense; can also be read もくめ.
Rare kanji spelling for the texture sense; also has the reading きり.
Rare reading of 肌理 for the texture sense.
The origin is uncertain; possibly related to the verb 決める (to decide, to set), but the connection is not clear. The kanji 肌理 and 木目 are semantic compounds for texture and wood grain respectively.