Kanji 明 — "Bright"
Here is what 明 means, how it is read, what it is built from, and a story that makes "Bright" stick.
How it is read
めい, みょう, みん
the reading borrowed from Chinese — usually appears in compound words
あ.かり, あか.るい, あか.るむ, あか.らむ, あき.らか, あ.ける, -あ.け, あ.く, あ.くる, あ.かす
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.
The Sun and the Moon are the most Bright things in the sky.
- 日 Sun
The Sun in the sky is rectangular in shape. The stroke in the middle is a cloud blocking the sun so it doesn't glare in your eyes.
- 月 Moon
The Moon is also in the sky. The lines are slightly tilted to show the curved concave shape of the moon.
Words that use 明
12 of 26 words in the app that contain this kanji — the most common ones first.
- 明日 あした / あす tomorrow
- 説明 せつめい explanation
- 証明 しょうめい proof, verification
- 明かり あかり lamplight, light (in general)
- 明るい あかるい bright, cheerful
- 明らか あきらか obvious, clear
- 不明 ふめい unknown, ambiguous
- 明ける あける to dawn, to become daylight
- 明後日 あさって / みょうごにち day after tomorrow
- 打ち明ける うちあける to confess, to be open (v.t.)
- 明かす あかす to reveal; to stay up (v.t.)
- 明確 めいかく clear, definite
Want 明 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.
