N5 kanji · 4 strokes
天 means sky
一 the line above · 大 a person, arms wide
天Real origin
A line above a person's head (大): the sky.
Real origin: where the kanji comes from, as far as scholars agree.
Meaning and readings
- Meanings
- sky, imperial
- JLPT level
- N5
- Strokes
- 4
- School grade
- Grade 1 in Japan
Japanese (kunyomi) あまつ amatsu
あまつ (amatsu) 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.
Other Japanese readings: あめ ame
From Chinese (onyomi) テン ten
テン (ten) 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
天ぷら てんぷら · tenpura
tempura, deep-fried fish and vegetables in a light batter
Built from
- 一 one
- 大 large
- 二 two
Tap a part to see the N5 and N4 kanji that use it.
大 Used in 100 kanji
See all 8 at N5 and N4Quick check
What does 天 mean?
Right: 天 means sky.Not quite: 天 means sky.In 天ぷら, which reading does 天 use?
Right. 天ぷら is read てんぷら (tenpura): 天 takes テン, its reading from Chinese.Not quite. 天ぷら is read てんぷら (tenpura): 天 takes テン, its reading from Chinese.