Kanji 左 — "Left"
Here is what 左 means, how it is read, what it is built from, and a story that makes "Left" stick.
How it is read
さ, しゃ
the reading borrowed from Chinese — usually appears in compound words
ひだり
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.
Ten Craft tools lined up on your Left — imagine ten tools like hammers and screwdrivers on your left side!
- ナ Ten(Alt.)
Another form of Ten (十).
- 工 Craft
It's the shape of a steel beam of a building, which represents Craft in construction.
Words that use 左
4 of 4 words in the app that contain this kanji — the most common ones first.
- 左 ひだり left
- 左右 さゆう left and right, influence
- 左利き ひだりきき left-handedness, sake drinker, left-hander
- 左甚五郎 ひだりじんごろう famous Japanese sculptor of the Edo Period
Want 左 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.
