Learn
漢字の算数
Discover how kanji combine to create new meanings. Learn Japanese through visual equations!
StructureHow the kanji is literally written.
Two trees side by side suggest a little woodland! The kanji is literally written with two 木.
Repeating a component is a traditional way of suggesting “many” or “a group”. It is how these particular kanji are built, not a rule that adding meanings explains every kanji.
StructureHow the kanji is literally written.
Three trees suggest a whole forest! The kanji is literally written with three 木.
Three copies suggest “a great many” trees. Japanese usually uses 森 for a bigger, denser wood than 林, though the line between them is not strict.
Memory aidA story to help you remember, not the real history.
Picture a girl (女) who is “not yet” (未) grown up: a younger sister.
This is a memory story, not the real history of the kanji. Many kanji combine a meaning part and a sound part, and 未 (ミ) is generally explained as the sound part of 妹 (マイ), not as “not yet”.
