What is the Kanji for "Refrain" and "Abstain"?

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

The Japanese Kanji for "Refrain" and "Abstain" is "控".

This kanji has 2 readings:

Its kunyomi reading is "Hika".

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 2 parts:

The radical "扌" means "Hand" . And The kanji "空" means "Sky" and "Empty" and can be read as "Kuu", "Sora", and "Su".

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

What does the kanji "控" mean in japanese?

"控" means "Refrain" and "Abstain".

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

Here are some words that use this kanji:

控除: "Deduction". The noun '控除 (こうじょ)' means 'deduction'. It refers to an amount that is subtracted from the total, such as taxes or expenses. This can be used in the context of financial statements, tax returns, or other accounting/financial situations. For example: I was able to claim a large deduction on my tax return - (私は税金申告書で大幅な控除を受けることができました).

控える: "Restrain" or "Refrain". The Japanese verb '控える (ひかえる)' has two main meanings: 'to restrain' or 'to refrain'. When used with this meaning, it indicates that someone is holding back or limiting their actions, words, or behavior. For example: I will refrain from drinking alcohol tonight - (今夜は酒を控えます). She restrained herself from saying more - (彼女はそれ以上言うのを控えた).

控え室: "Waiting room". The Japanese noun '控え室 (ひかえしつ)' refers to a waiting room or lounge, usually in a public building such as a hotel, office, or hospital. It is a space where people can sit and wait before an appointment or meeting. For example: I waited in the waiting room before my doctor's appointment - (医師の診察の前に控え室で待っていました).

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

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.