Kanji Kaisen

漢字Kanji · in Nature & Elements

波: waves, billows

Also: Poland

JLPT N28 strokesGrade 3Your ink: 白 Not met

氵 carries the meaning · 皮 gives the sound

8 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

ハha · on'yomi · in compounds

  • 波紋はもんripple [n.]
  • 波長はちょうwavelength
  • 電磁波でんじはelectromagnetic waves
  • 電波でんぱradio wave
  • 音波おんぱsound wave
  • 寒波かんぱa cold snap

なみnami · kun'yomi · on its own

  • 波なみwave [n.]
  • 波乗りなみのりsurfing
  • 津波つなみtsunami, tidal wave
  • 人波ひとなみsurging crowd, stampede
  • 波打つなみうつdash against, undulate, heave

Special readingsThese words are read as a whole, not from the readings above.

  • 波止場はとばwharf, jetty

Words: Kanji alive, CC BY 4.0.

Learn it 4 steps
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成り立ち

Where it comes from

Memory story · made up to help you remember

“Imagine three raindrops falling—that's sanzui! Whenever you see these three dots on the left side of a kanji, think of water, liquids, or anything that flows.”
More in the 氵 water story
繋がり
Ink shades, lightest to darkest: 白 Not met, 淡 Met, 中 Learning, 濃 Familiar, 印 Mastered
氵

Also built on water (氵)

All 125
皮

Also built on skin (皮)

All 5

The 皮 family reads ヒ (hi); 波 is read ハ.

波 gives its sound to

The family reading is ハ (ha). Sound parts: KanjiVG.

Also read ハ

5 kanji share this on'yomi

Easy to confuse

The difference, side by side
波 waves · 氵
vs披 expose · 扌
波 has 氵 where 披 has 扌.
In ChineseSame character in simplified and traditional · bō

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

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

Pinyin bō 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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