ChiramiN5 kanji · 13 strokes
電 means electricity
電
雨 rain
電Real origin
Rain (雨) above a bolt of lightning: electricity.
Real origin: where the kanji comes from, as far as scholars agree.
Meaning and readings
- Meaning
- electricity
- JLPT level
- N5
- Strokes
- 13
- School grade
- Grade 2 in Japan
From Chinese (onyomi) デン den
デン (den) 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
電話 でんわ · denwa
telephone call, phone call
Built from
- 雨 rain
- 乙 second, hook
- 田 rice field
Tap a part to see the N5 and N4 kanji that use it.
田 Used in 120 kanji
See all 9 at N5 and N4Quick check
What does 電 mean?
Right: 電 means electricity.Not quite: 電 means electricity.In 電話, 電 is read でん. Which kind of reading is that?
Right. 電話 is read でんわ (denwa): 電 takes デン, its reading from Chinese. It's the only reading 電 has.Not quite. 電話 is read でんわ (denwa): 電 takes デン, its reading from Chinese. It's the only reading 電 has.