What is the Kanji for "Image" and "Statue"?

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

The Japanese Kanji for "Image" and "Statue" is "像".

This kanji has 1 reading:

Its onyomi reading is "Zou".

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 "亻" means "Person" . And The kanji "象" means "Elephant" and "Phenomenon" and can be read as "Zou" and "Shou".

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

What does the kanji "像" mean in japanese?

"像" means "Image" and "Statue".

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

Here are some words that use this kanji:

像: "Elephant". The Japanese noun '像 (ぞう)' means 'elephant'. This word is used to refer to the large, gray mammal with a long trunk, large ears, and two ivory tusks. Elephants are known for their intelligence, strength, and important role in various cultures around the world. For example: The zoo has a new elephant - (動物園に新しい象がいる). I saw an elephant at the circus - (サーカスで象を見ました).

画像: "Image". The noun '画像 (がぞう)' means 'image'. It refers to a visual representation of something, such as a photograph, drawing, or computer-generated graphic. Images are widely used in various contexts, such as in print media, digital media, and visual arts. For example: I took a beautiful image of the sunset - (美しい夕日の画像を撮りました). She showed me an image of her family - (彼女は家族の画像を見せてくれました).

映像: "Image" or "Video". The Japanese noun '映像 (えいぞう)' can refer to either an image or a video/moving image. It is used to describe a visual representation, whether a still picture or a sequence of images displayed in motion. For example: The image is beautiful - (その映像は美しい). We watched a video - (私たちは映像を見ました).

現像: "Develop". The verbal noun '現像 (げんぞう)' means 'to develop'. This term refers to the process of developing photographic film or digital images. It involves chemical processing that brings out the latent image captured on the film or digital sensor. For example: I need to develop the photos from my vacation - (私は旅行の写真を現像する必要がある). The darkroom is where the film gets developed - (暗室が写真フィルムを現像する場所である).

想像: "Imagine". The verbal noun '想像 (そうぞう)' means 'to imagine'. This term refers to the mental process of forming new ideas, concepts or images that are not physically present. It involves the ability to think creatively and visualize things that do not yet exist. For example: I can imagine a world without war - (私は戦争のない世界が想像できます). She is imagining a happy future - (彼女は幸せな未来を想像している).

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 "ぞ" is read as "zo". And The hiragana "う" is read as "u".

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.