What is the Kanji for "Light"?

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

The Japanese Kanji for "Light" is "光".

This kanji has 3 readings:

Its kunyomi readings are "Hika" and "Hikari".

Its onyomi reading is "Kou".

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 3 parts:

The radical "⺌" means "Small" . The kanji "一" means "One" and can be read as "Ichi", "Itsu", and "Hito". And The radical "儿" means "Legs" .

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

What does the kanji "光" mean in japanese?

"光" means "Light".

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:

光: "Light". The Japanese noun '光 (ひかり)' means 'light'. This noun refers to the natural or artificial electromagnetic radiation that is visible to the human eye. It can be used to describe sunlight, moonlight, or any kind of illumination. For example: The room is filled with natural light - (部屋は自然の光に満ちている). The streetlights provide light at night - (街灯が夜の光を提供する).

観光: "Tourism". The Japanese noun '観光 (かんこう)' means 'tourism'. This word refers to the activity of traveling for pleasure, sightseeing, or visiting places of interest. It encompasses the industry and business of attracting, accommodating, and entertaining tourists. For example: We went on a tourism trip to Kyoto - (私たちは京都への観光に行きました). Tourism is an important part of Japan's economy - (観光は日本経済の重要な部分です).

光る: "Shine". The Japanese verb '光る (ひかる)' means 'to shine'. It is used to describe something that emits or reflects light, such as the sun, stars, jewelry, or other luminous objects. It can also be used metaphorically to describe ideas, actions, or achievements that are brilliant or outstanding. For example: The sun is shining - (太陽が光っている). Her eyes shined with joy - (彼女の目が喜びで光っていた).

光景: "Scene". The Japanese noun '光景 (こうけい)' refers to a visual scene or landscape that one witnesses. It can describe anything from a natural vista to an event unfolding before your eyes. For example: The beautiful mountain scene took my breath away - (美しい山の光景に息を呑んだ). The chaotic street scene was overwhelming - (騒々しい街の光景に圧倒された).

蛍光灯: "Fluorescent light". The Japanese noun '蛍光灯 (けいこうとう)' refers to a fluorescent light, which is an electric lamp that produces light by using electricity to excite mercury vapor inside a glass tube. Fluorescent lights are commonly used for indoor lighting due to their energy efficiency and bright illumination. For example: The office has fluorescent lighting - (オフィスには蛍光灯がある). I need to change the fluorescent bulbs - (蛍光灯のランプを交換しなければならない).

日光: "Sunlight". The Japanese noun '日光 (にっこう)' refers to sunlight or natural daylight. It is used to describe the light emitted by the sun, either directly or indirectly. This word can be used to talk about the illumination provided by sunlight, as well as the warmth and therapeutic effects of exposure to sunlight. For example: The plants need more sunlight - (その植物はもっと日光が必要です). Sitting in the sunlight feels nice - (日光に当たるのは気持ちいいですね).

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 "こ" is read as "ko". The hiragana "う" is read as "u". The hiragana "ひ" is read as "hi". The hiragana "か" is read as "ka". And The hiragana "り" is read as "ri".

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.