ChiramiN5 kanji · 5 strokes
北 means north
北
丬 a person · 匕 another person, facing away
北Real origin
Two people back to back: it first meant back, then north.
Real origin: where the kanji comes from, as far as scholars agree.
Meaning and readings
- Meaning
- north
- JLPT level
- N5
- Strokes
- 5
- School grade
- Grade 2 in Japan
Japanese (kunyomi) きた kita
きた (kita) 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) ホク hoku
ホク (hoku) 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
南北 なんぼく · nanboku
north and south, north to south
Built from
- 匕 spoon
- 爿 split wood
Tap a part to see the N5 and N4 kanji that use it.
匕 Used in 56 kanji
See all 5 at N5 and N4Quick check
What does 北 mean?
Right: 北 means north.Not quite: 北 means north.In 南北, which reading does 北 use?
Right. 南北 is read なんぼく (nanboku): 北 takes ホク, its reading from Chinese, which becomes ぼく here.Not quite. 南北 is read なんぼく (nanboku): 北 takes ホク, its reading from Chinese, which becomes ぼく here.