ChiramiN4 kanji · 11 strokes
菜 means vegetable
菜
艹 plants · 采 to pick
菜Memory trick
Plants you pick (采) by hand: vegetables.
Memory trick: a picture to help you remember the kanji, not its history.
Meaning and readings
- Meanings
- vegetable, side dish, greens
- JLPT level
- N4
- Strokes
- 11
- School grade
- Grade 4 in Japan
Japanese (kunyomi) な na
な (na) is the Japanese word for this kanji. You use it when the kanji stands alone or has kana after it. Dictionaries call this the kun reading.
From Chinese (onyomi) サイ sai
サイ (sai) came from Chinese with the character. You mostly hear it in words made of several kanji. Dictionaries call this the on reading.
Tap a reading to see when it's used. Why kanji have two kinds of reading: onyomi vs kunyomi.
Common word
野菜 やさい · yasai
vegetable
Built from
- 艹 grass, plants
- 爪 claw
- 木 tree
Tap a part to see the N5 and N4 kanji that use it.
艹 Used in 82 kanji
See all 6 at N5 and N4Quick check
What does 菜 mean?
Right: 菜 means vegetable.Not quite: 菜 means vegetable.In 野菜, which reading does 菜 use?
Right. 野菜 is read やさい (yasai): 菜 takes サイ, its reading from Chinese.Not quite. 野菜 is read やさい (yasai): 菜 takes サイ, its reading from Chinese.