Kanji Kaisen

漢字Kanji · in Tools & Weapons

冥: dark

N1 (our estimate)10 strokesSecondary schoolYour ink: 白 Not met

冖 carries the meaning · 日 and 六 are drawn in

10 strokes
  • Small seal · Qin
  • Today

Small seal: Wikimedia Commons, public domain. Today’s form: KanjiVG, CC BY-SA 3.0.

Two readings, and the words that use each

メイmei · on'yomi · in compounds

  • 冥福めいふくhappiness in the next world; heavenly bliss
  • 冥界めいかいhades; realm of the dead

ミョウmyou · on'yomi

  • 冥利みょうりprovidence; luck; favor

Also read くらい, with no example words in our sources. Words: JMdict, EDRDG, CC BY-SA 4.0.

Learn it 4 steps
Print sheet Present
成り立ち

Where it comes from

Memory story · made up to help you remember

“Place a cover on it! Imagine a thin, elegant cloth being draped over a precious object to keep it safe from dust or prying eyes.”
More in the 冖 cover story
繋がり
Ink shades, lightest to darkest: 白 Not met, 淡 Met, 中 Learning, 濃 Familiar, 印 Mastered
冖

Also built on cover (冖)

All 21
日

Also built on sun (日)

All 70

Also read メイ

8 kanji share this on'yomi

Also read ミョウ

7 kanji share this on'yomi

Easy to confuse

The difference, side by side
冥 dark · 冖 + 六
vs音 sound · 立
冥 has 冖 + 六 where 音 has 立.
In ChineseSame character in simplified and traditional · míng

Same form: 冥 is written the same way in mainland China (simplified) and in Taiwan and Hong Kong (traditional).

Simplified
冥 mainland China, Singapore
Traditional
冥 Taiwan, Hong Kong

Pinyin míng most common reading

Forms and pinyin: Unicode Unihan database (Unicode License v3). Pinyin lists the most common reading, not every reading.

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