What is the Kanji for "Face"?

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

The Japanese Kanji for "Face" is "顔".

This kanji has 2 readings:

Its kunyomi reading is "Kao".

Its onyomi reading is "Gan".

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 5 parts:

The radical "𦣻" means "Neck" . The kanji "八" means "Eight" and can be read as "Yo", "Ya", and "Hachi". The kanji "立" means "Stand" and can be read as "Ritsu" and "Ta". The radical "厂" means "Cliff" . And The radical "彡" means "Fur" .

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

What does the kanji "顔" mean in japanese?

"顔" means "Face".

Japanese School Students learn this kanji in Second Grade, while foreigners may learn this kanji in preparation for the JLPT N3 exam.

Here are some words that use this kanji:

顔: "Face". The Japanese noun '顔 (かお)' refers to the front part of the head, containing the eyes, nose, mouth, and associated features. It is used to describe the overall appearance and expression of a person. Some example sentences: I can't recognize their face - (その人の顔が分からない). She has a beautiful face - (彼女は美しい顔をしている).

笑顔: "Smile". The Japanese noun '笑顔 (えがお)' means 'smile'. This word refers to the facial expression indicating happiness, pleasure or amusement. It is often associated with positive emotions and can be used to describe someone's friendly, cheerful demeanor. For example: Her smile lit up the room - (彼女の笑顔が部屋を照らした). She has a beautiful smile - (彼女はきれいな笑顔を持っている).

朝顔: "Morning glory". The Japanese word '朝顔 (あさがお)' refers to the morning glory, a type of flowering vine that typically blooms early in the morning. Morning glories are known for their vibrant, funnel-shaped flowers that come in a variety of colors such as blue, purple, pink, and white. They are a popular garden plant in Japan and are associated with the concept of fleeting beauty, as the flowers only last for a single day. For example: The morning glories in my garden are in full bloom - (私の庭の朝顔が満開です).

顔色: "Complexion". The Japanese noun '顔色 (かおいろ)' refers to a person's facial complexion or skin tone. It is often used to describe someone's appearance and how they are feeling, as changes in complexion can indicate mood, health, or emotional state. For example: She looks pale, her complexion is not good - (彼女は顔色が悪そうだ). His complexion seems healthy - (彼の顔色は健康そうだ).

顔付き: "Appearance". The Japanese noun '顔付き (かおつき)' refers to a person's facial appearance, features or expression. It can be used to describe someone's unique facial characteristics, as well as their overall look or demeanor. For example: He has a stern appearance - (彼の顔付きは厳しい). Her appearance is kind and gentle - (彼女の顔付きは優しく柔らかい).

横顔: "Profile". The noun '横顔 (よこがお)' means 'profile'. It refers to the side view or side perspective of a person's face. This word is often used to describe the distinct outline of someone's facial features when viewed from the side, such as the shape of their nose, jawline, and chin. For example: She has a beautiful profile - (彼女は美しい横顔をしている). I noticed his sharp profile as he turned his head - (彼が頭を回したとき、鋭い横顔が見えた).

泣き顔: "Teary face". The noun '泣き顔 (なきがお)' refers to a facial expression that appears when someone is crying or has been crying. It describes a face that is red, with tears, and often has a sorrowful or distressed look. This can be used to describe the appearance of someone who has been crying, such as: She had a teary face after watching the sad movie - (悲しい映画を見た後、彼女は泣き顔だった).

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 "が" is read as "ga". The hiragana "ん" is read as "n". The hiragana "か" is read as "ka". And The hiragana "お" is read as "o".

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.