Usage patterns 〈 事こと 〉 に 判はん 子こ を 押お す to stamp one's seal on (a document)
Please stamp your seal on the contract.
判はん 子こ を 彫ほ る to have a seal carved/engraved
I had a new personal seal carved.
判はん 子こ を 忘わす れる to forget to bring one's seal
I went to the bank but forgot my seal.
Kanji 判 judgement, judgment, signature 子 child, sign of the rat, 11PM-1AM Related words 印鑑 is the more formal, official term used for registered seals in legal and administrative contexts, while 判子 is the everyday word for the same kind of stamp.
印章 is a technical, somewhat literary term for a seal itself, whereas 判子 is the ordinary, spoken word people use in daily life.
判子 is the everyday word for a personal name seal, while 印 is a more formal or literary term often used in compounds.
判子 is a personal seal used for signing official documents, whereas スタンプ is a casual stamp used for decoration or loyalty cards.
判子 is the everyday casual word for a name stamp used to sign documents, whereas 朱印 denotes a specifically red-inked, official or ceremonial seal.
Written forms はんこ Usage 16%
It is usually written in kana; this hiragana spelling is a practical everyday form.
ハンコ Usage 72%
kana-only spelling
Katakana spelling given as a no-kanji reading; common in casual, commercial, or visually emphatic writing.
判はん 子こ Usage 12%
ateji (phonetic kanji usage)
Attested kanji spelling, marked as ateji; readable and common enough to encounter, though kana is often preferred.
Etymology The kanji spelling 判子 is as ateji, i.e. a phonetic spelling rather than a transparent kanji derivation. The kana spellings はんこ and ハンコ are widely used.
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