What is the Kanji for "Clothes"?

If you are wondering what is the Japanese Kanji for "Clothes", you've come to the right place!

The Japanese Kanji for "Clothes" is "衣".

This kanji has 2 readings:

Its kunyomi reading is "Koromo".

Its onyomi reading is "I".

kunyomi readings are based on the pronunciation of native Japanese words, and onyomi readings are based on the Chinese pronunciation of the character.

If you visually breakdown this kanji, you can see is made up of 2 parts:

The radical "亠" means "Lid" . And The radical "𧘇" means "Garment" .

Now, let's make sure you understand this kanji the other way around too.

What does the kanji "衣" mean in japanese?

"衣" means "Clothes".

Japanese School Students learn this kanji in Fourth Grade, while foreigners may learn this kanji in preparation for the JLPT N2 exam.

Here are some words that use this kanji:

衣類: "Clothes". The Japanese noun '衣類 (いるい)' means 'clothes'. It refers to items of clothing such as shirts, pants, dresses, etc. that are worn to cover and protect the body. '衣類' can be used to talk about clothing in general or to refer to a specific set or collection of garments. For example: I need to buy some new clothes - (新しい衣類を買う必要がある). She has a large wardrobe of clothes - (彼女は大きな衣類のクローゼットがある).

衣服: "Clothing". The Japanese noun '衣服 (いふく)' means 'clothing'. It refers to articles of dress, such as shirts, pants, dresses, etc. that are worn to cover and protect the body. It is a general term that encompasses different types of garments. For example: My favorite clothing is my comfortable jeans - (私の好きな衣服は快適なジーンズです). She has a large wardrobe of nice clothing - (彼女は素敵な衣服がたくさんあります).

衣食住: "Livelihood". The Japanese noun '衣食住 (いしょくじゅう)' refers to the three basic necessities of life - food, clothing, and shelter. It encompasses the fundamental requirements for human survival and well-being. This term is often used to describe the essentials that people need to live comfortably and sustain themselves. For example: Providing food, clothing and shelter is the basis for one's livelihood - (衣食住は人生の基本である).

衣: "Clothing". The Japanese noun '衣 (い)' means 'clothing'. This word refers to garments or articles worn to cover the body. It is a general term that encompasses various types of clothes, from everyday wear to traditional or formal attire. For example: My new clothing is nice - (私の新しい衣が素敵です). She wears formal clothing - (彼女は正装の衣を着ています).

衣装: "Costume". The Japanese noun '衣装 (いしょう)' refers to a costume or outfit worn for a specific purpose, such as a theatrical performance, a special event, or a traditional ceremony. It can include elaborate or decorative clothing, accessories, and other items that create a distinct look or character. For example: She wore an elaborate costume for the Halloween party - (彼女はハロウィンのパーティーのために華やかな衣装を着た). The performer's costume was part of the overall artistic vision - (その芸能人の衣装は全体の芸術的なビジョンの一部でした).

To make really sure you learn this Kanji, I've prepared an interactive lesson for you. You are going to learn the readings and meanings of this kanji.

But first, you need to know a little bit about Hiragana and Katakana.

Hiragana and katakana are japanese syllabaries, this means that each character represents a syllable.

This are the characters you need to know for this lesson:

The hiragana "い" is read as "i". The hiragana "こ" is read as "ko". The hiragana "ろ" is read as "ro". And The hiragana "も" is read as "mo".

Heres a quick tutorial on how to use it. You'll be asked three type of questions: meaning, reading, and writing.

For meanings questions all you have to do is type the english meaning. If there is more than one meaning, you have to include them all in your answer separating them by commas (,).

For Reading questions you have to type the reading in romaji (roman letters, our normal alphabet) and it'll be automatically converted to hiragana if necessary. If there is more than one reading, you have to include them all in your answer separating them by commas (,).

For Writing questions some options will appear and all you have to do is select the correct ones.