漢字Kanji · in Textiles, Plants & Food
綿: cotton
JLPT N214 strokesGrade 5Your ink: 白 Not met
- 糸thread(meaning)
- 帛(form)
糸 carries the meaning · 帛 is drawn in
14 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
メンmen · on'yomi · in compounds
- 綿花めんかraw cotton, cotton wool
- 綿糸めんしcotton yarn
- 綿棒めんぼうcotton swab
- 綿織物めんおりものcotton fabrics, cotton textiles
- 綿密なめんみつなdetailed, careful, thorough
わたwata · kun'yomi · on its own
- 綿わたraw cotton
- 綿菓子わたがしcotton candy
Special readingsThese words are read as a whole, not from the readings above.
- 木綿もめんcotton
Words: Kanji alive, CC BY 4.0.
成り立ち
Where it comes from
Memory story · made up to help you remember
“Everything is connected! This radical represents the invisible threads that tie us together—our relationships, the fine "silk" of our words, and the intricate weaving of our personal histories.”
繋がり
Connections
Ink shades, lightest to darkest: 白 Not met, 淡 Met, 中 Learning, 濃 Familiar, 印 Mastered
帛
Also built on 帛
Also read メン
3 kanji share this on'yomiEasy to confuse
The difference, side by side綿 cotton · 帛
vs練 practice · 東In ChineseSimplified 绵 · traditional, as in Japanese · mián
Japan keeps the traditional form 綿; mainland China simplifies it to 绵.
- Simplified
- 绵 mainland China, Singapore
- Traditional
- 綿 Taiwan, Hong Kong
Pinyin mián 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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