ChiramiN5 kanji · 8 strokes
東 means east
東
木 tree · 日 sun
東Memory trick
The sun (日) rising behind a tree (木): east.
Memory trick: a picture to help you remember the kanji, not its history.
Meaning and readings
- Meaning
- east
- JLPT level
- N5
- Strokes
- 8
- School grade
- Grade 2 in Japan
Japanese (kunyomi) ひがし higashi
ひがし (higashi) 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) トウ tou
トウ (tou) 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
東西 とうざい · touzai
east and west
Built from
- 木 tree
- 日 sun, day
- 丨 a line
- 一 one
- 田 rice field
Tap a part to see the N5 and N4 kanji that use it.
Quick check
What does 東 mean?
Right: 東 means east.Not quite: 東 means east.In 東西, which reading does 東 use?
Right. 東西 is read とうざい (touzai): 東 takes トウ, its reading from Chinese.Not quite. 東西 is read とうざい (touzai): 東 takes トウ, its reading from Chinese.