狭
狭 — Cramped
cramped, narrow, contract, tight
On’yomiキョウ (kyou)
On’yomiコウ (kou)
Kun’yomiせまい (semai)
Kun’yomiせばめる (sebameru)
Kun’yomiせばまる (sebamaru)
Kun’yomiさ (sa)
Stroke order (9 strokes)
Watch the strokes draw themselves in the correct order — numbers mark where each stroke starts. Diagram from KanjiVG (CC BY-SA).
Common words using 狭
| Word | Reading | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 狭い | せまい semai | narrow; confined; small |
| 狭まる | せばまる sebamaru | to narrow; to contract |
| 狭める | せばめる sebameru | to narrow; to reduce; to contract |
| 狭心症 | きょうしんしょう kyoushinshou | angina pectoris |
| 狭間 | はざま hazama | gap; narrow space between things; interstice |
| 狭き門 | せまきもん semakimon | the strait gate (in the Bible); the narrow gate; high barrier (to enter a highly competitive school, company, etc.) |
Study notes
狭 is a JLPT N1 kanji written with 9 strokes. It is taught at secondary-school level in Japan. Ranked #1346 of the 2,500 most frequent kanji in newspapers. On’yomi (音読み) are Chinese-derived readings mostly used in compound words; kun’yomi (訓読み) are native Japanese readings, with any highlighted part written in hiragana after the kanji (okurigana).
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