Kanji 友 — "Friend"
Here is what 友 means, how it is read, what it is built from, and a story that makes "Friend" stick.
How it is read
ゆう
the reading borrowed from Chinese — usually appears in compound words
とも
the native Japanese reading — usually appears when the kanji stands alone
How to remember it
Kanji are not random strokes. Learn the parts and the whole becomes easy. Put the parts together into one picture. The stranger it is, the harder it is to forget.
Even after Ten years, true Friends will find each other Again!
- ナ Ten(Alt.)
Another form of Ten (十).
- 又 Again
To write this component, you can't draw it in one stroke. You have to draw a line Again, crossing the original line.
Words that use 友
6 of 6 words in the app that contain this kanji — the most common ones first.
- 友達 ともだち friend
- 友人 ゆうじん friend (formal)
- 親友 しんゆう close friend, buddy
- 友 とも friend, companion, pal
- 友情 ゆうじょう friendship, fellowship
- 友好 ゆうこう friendship
Want 友 to still be there next month?
Reading it once is not remembering it. The app brings each kanji back right before you would have forgotten it.
