What is the Kanji for "Life", "Command", and "Fate"?

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

The Japanese Kanji for "Life", "Command", and "Fate" is "命".

This kanji has 3 readings:

Its kunyomi reading is "Inochi".

Its onyomi readings are "Mei" and "Myou".

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 "令" means "Orders" and can be read as "Rei". And The kanji "口" means "Mouth" and can be read as "Ku", "Kuchi", and "Kou".

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

What does the kanji "命" mean in japanese?

"命" means "Life", "Command", and "Fate".

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

Here are some words that use this kanji:

命: "Life". The Japanese noun '命 (いのち)' means 'life'. It refers to the state of being alive, the period from birth to death, or the vital force that animates a living organism. This word carries a strong sense of the preciousness and importance of existence. It can be used in a variety of contexts, such as: He values his life - (彼は命を大切にしている). Life is short - (命は短い).

生命: "Life". The Japanese noun '生命 (せいめい)' means 'life'. This word refers to the state of being alive, the force that gives living things the ability to grow, develop, and reproduce. It can be used to describe the life of a person, animal, or even a plant. For example: The right to life - (生命の権利). All living things have life - (すべての生物には生命がある).

命令: "Order". The verbal noun '命令 (めいれい)' means 'order'. This term refers to an authoritative instruction or directive that must be carried out. It is often used in formal or military contexts to express a command that someone is required to follow. For example: The general gave the troops a direct order - (将軍は部隊に明確な命令を下した). She obeyed the teacher's order - (彼女は先生の命令に従った).

革命: "Revolution". The Japanese noun '革命 (かくめい)' means 'revolution'. This word refers to a major, sudden, and often violent change in government and/or social conditions. It typically involves the overthrow of an existing regime and its replacement with a new one. '革命' can be used to describe political revolutions, social revolutions, or even scientific/technological revolutions. For example: The French Revolution overthrew the monarchy - (フランス革命は王政を打倒した). The industrial revolution led to major changes in society - (産業革命は社会に大きな変化をもたらした).

一生懸命: "Hard". The adverb '一生懸命 (いっしょうけんめい)' means 'hard'. This adverb describes doing something with great effort, intensity, or determination. It conveys a sense of giving one's full or utmost effort to a task. For example: I studied hard for the exam - (試験に一生懸命に勉強した). She works hard every day - (彼女は毎日一生懸命働いている).

命ずる: "Order". The Japanese verb '命ずる (めいずる)' means 'to order'. It is used when a person in authority gives an official command or instruction. The verb implies that the order comes from a superior position and must be carried out. For example: The general ordered his troops to advance - (将軍は部隊に前進するよう命じた). She was ordered to report to the principal's office - (彼女は校長室に報告するよう命じられた).

懸命: "Earnest". The Japanese adjectival noun '懸命 (けんめい)' means 'earnest'. This word describes someone or something that is putting in great effort and determination to accomplish a task or goal. It conveys a sense of diligence, hard work, and being dedicated to a cause. For example: She worked earnestly to finish the project on time - (彼女はプロジェクトを期限に間に合わせるべく懸命に働いた). It was an earnest attempt to solve the problem - (問題を解決しようとする懸命な試みだった).

運命: "Fate". The Japanese noun '運命 (うんめい)' means 'fate'. It refers to the predetermined or destined course of events believed to be beyond a person's control. It can suggest the idea of an unavoidable or inescapable path in life. For example: My fate is sealed - (私の運命は決まった). Believing in fate - (運命を信じる)

寿命: "Lifespan". The Japanese noun '寿命 (じゅみょう)' refers to the natural length or duration of a person's life. It can be used to describe the typical or expected lifespan of a person, animal, or even something non-living. For example: The average lifespan of a person in this country is 80 years - (この国の平均寿命は80歳です). The lifespan of this light bulb is about 1,000 hours - (この電球の寿命は約1,000時間です).

任命: "Appointment". The Japanese noun '任命 (にんめい)' means 'appointment'. It refers to the act of officially designating or assigning someone to a particular position, office, or duty. This word is commonly used when discussing the formal process of being selected for a job, role, or responsibility. For example: She was appointed as the new manager - (彼女は新しい管理職に任命された). The appointment of the new director - (新しい理事の任命).

使命: "Mission". The noun '使命 (しめい)' refers to one's assigned duty, purpose or calling. It expresses a sense of responsibility or obligation that an individual or organization has to fulfill a particular task or goal. For example: It is my mission to help the community - (私の使命はコミュニティを助けることです). They have a sacred mission to protect the environment - (彼らは環境を守るという神聖な使命を持っている).

命じる: "Order". The Japanese verb '命じる (めいじる)' means 'to order'. This verb is used to convey a directive or instruction from a person in authority to someone under their command. It implies a sense of obligation or necessity on the part of the recipient to follow the order. For example: The general ordered his troops to advance - (将軍は軍隊に前進するよう命じた). The manager ordered the employees to work overtime - (マネージャーは従業員に残業するよう命じた).

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 "め" is read as "me". The hiragana "い" is read as "i". The hiragana "み" is read as "mi". The hiragana "う" is read as "u". The hiragana "の" is read as "no". And The hiragana "ち" is read as "chi".

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.