This page provides a synopsis of all 553 kanji that have so far been featured by Joy o' Kanji. Each section provides the ability to purchase and download a kanji essay (), study flashcards for the essay content (), play entertaining study games (), or view the kanji's details on Kanshudo ().
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粘
sticky
JOK: 1679
Knowing this kanji enables us to talk about sticky substances (from natto and rice to Post-It notes) and about a stick-to-it attitude in life, in sports, and in business. Learn to say, "You hung in there very well, but I won." Find out which term for "tenacious" is positive (i.e., persevering) and which is negative (i.e., persistent). Also learn terms related to clay, adhesion, viscosity, and more.
濃
thick
JOK: 1681
This kanji brings us intense eye colors, strong cups of coffee, deep love, and flavorful food. Learn to talk about everything from the salt levels in the Dead Sea to hot-pink iPhones, dark soy sauce, and juice sold as a concentrate. Find out how to refer to the pronounced scars of World War II and to unusually well-defined Japanese faces. Also learn to say "chock-full of blueberry flavor."
把
grasp; bundle
JOK: 1682
With one essay, you’ll learn to say all of the following: “I don’t have a handle on the situation,” “She has good control over her class,” “We kept track of all our expenses from the trip,” “I grasped the entire structure of his argument,” “He’s the type that doesn’t worry about details,” “Spinach is 100 yen a bunch,” “The pitcher handle was broken,” and “Don’t lump all these issues together.”
杯
cup
JOK: 1685
If you invite someone out for drinks, use saké cups, make a toast, and count how many drinks you've had, 杯 will come in very handy. And if you drink till you're tipsy and full in a cheap drinking spot filled with people, you'll need 杯 four more times. As if this kanji weren't useful enough, you can also use it when counting octopi (which you might do after enough drinks)!
排
reject
JOK: 1686
Words with 排 run the gamut from xenophobic policies to culverts that drain water. To make sense of this range, simply perceive 排 as 'pushing out what's bad or unnecessary.' When cars spew exhaust and people scurry to toilets, 排 drives this outward flow. With 排, you can also say that you're overcoming difficulties, doing away with old rules, or doing something at all costs.
輩
colleague
JOK: 1688
Find out about superior-inferior relationships in schools and workplaces and discover what upends that “seesaw.” Learn to say, “He is quite popular with his peers,” “She was promoted over her seniors,” “He is my junior by three years,” “He forgets his position and speaks impertinently to his seniors,” and “Many talented people emerged toward the end of the Edo period.”
梅
plum tree
JOK: 1689
See how Japanese apricots (ume) relate to the rainy season, the new year, haiku, Osaka, a god sleeping in poisonous ume pits, shochu, senbei, syphilis, pine and bamboo, and childbirth. See how ume blossoms have inspired paintings, sweets, and color terms. Also read about ume-related pickles, a manly candy, flying ume, and shrines with connections to ume.
拍
clap
JOK: 1695
Your heart will beat faster as you find out how to keep time in Japanese, how to be offbeat, how to clap at a shrine, and how the word for this differs from the term for ordinary clapping. Learn to say, "The moment I stood up, I hit my head." Find out why people compare julienned veggies to certain pieces of wood, and see all the ways in which the Japanese use that wood.
舶
ship
JOK: 1698
Understand which kanji to choose when communicating about ships versus smaller boats. Discover terms for goods imported by sea, and find out how the use of airplanes changed the use of those words. Also learn to say, “We imported books by sea” and “Not a few people think that any foreign-made articles are superior to those made in this country.”
漠
vague
JOK: 1700
One-third of Earth's surface is desert, and 1,900 square meters of the planet turn to desert every second. Learn about the desert that may one day be your home! Also find out how, contrary to what one would expect, rainy Japan has connections to deserts. It has two ties to the massive Gobi Desert, one historical, the other environmental. And Japan has little-known deserts of its own!
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