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What is the Kanji for "Dye"?

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

The Japanese Kanji for "Dye" is "染".

This kanji has 3 readings:

Its kunyomi readings are "Shi" and "So".

Its onyomi reading is "Sen".

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 kanji "木" means "Tree" and "Wood" and can be read as "Boku", "Ki", "Moku", and "Ko". And The component "氿" .

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

What does the kanji "染" mean in japanese?

"染" means "Dye" .

Japanese School Students learn this kanji in Sixth Grade, while foreigners may learn this kanji in preparation for the JLPT N1 exam.

Here are some words that use this kanji:

感染: "Infection". The Japanese noun '感染 (かんせん)' means 'infection'. It refers to the process of a harmful microorganism, such as a virus or bacteria, entering and multiplying within the body, causing disease or illness. For example: The doctor confirmed the infection - (医師が感染を確認した). I had an ear infection - (私は耳の感染症があった).
汚染: "Pollution". The verbal noun '汚染 (おせん)' means 'pollution'. It refers to the introduction of harmful substances or contaminants into the environment, which can have detrimental effects on living organisms and ecosystems. It is often used in the context of air, water, or soil pollution caused by industrial waste, agricultural runoff, or other human activities. For example: Environmental pollution is a serious problem - (環境汚染は深刻な問題だ). The river is polluted - (川が汚染されている).
染みる: "Soak" or "Seep". The Japanese verb '染みる (しみる)' has multiple meanings. The primary meaning is 'to soak' or 'to be soaked', as in something becoming wet or saturated. For example: The water soaked into the ground - (水が地面に染みた). The secondary meaning is 'to seep' or 'to permeate', where a liquid or substance gradually enters or spreads through a material. For example: The ink seeped through the paper - (インクが紙に染みついた).
染める: "Dye". The Japanese verb '染める (そめる)' means 'to dye'. This verb is used to describe the action of applying color or pigment to something in order to change its appearance. It can be used for dyeing fabric, hair, or other materials. For example: She dyed her hair blue - (彼女は髪を青く染めた). The cloth was dyed red - (その布は赤く染められた).
伝染: "Spread". The Japanese verbal noun '伝染 (でんせん)' means 'to spread'. It refers to the act of transmitting diseases, ideas, or other things from one person or place to another. It can be used to describe the rapid dissemination of illnesses, rumors, or cultural influences. For example: The disease quickly spread through the population - (その病気は人口に急速に伝染した). The new fashion trend spread across the country - (その新しいファッショントレンドが全国に伝染していった).

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 "せ" is read as "se". The hiragana "ん" is read as "n". The hiragana "し" is read as "shi". And The hiragana "そ" is read as "so".