๐ Meaning & Origin
The ๆฅ radical represents the sun. Originally an ancient pictogram of a circle with a central dot: the glowing sun. It appears in kanji related to time, light, and daily life.
๐ Kanji by JLPT Level
โ๏ธ Where it appears & how it changes shape
ๆฅ keeps the same square shape wherever it appears, but it narrows when it sits on the left as a hen: compare the wide ๆฅ standing alone with the tall, compressed one in ๆ and ๆ. It also sits on top (ๆฉ, ๆ) and at the bottom (ๆฅ). Unlike water or hand, it has no separate side-form to learn.
๐ Don't confuse it with
One extra horizontal stroke inside, and taller than it is wide. ็ฎ is the eye; ๆฅ is the sun.
Adds a vertical stroke crossing the middle, splitting the box into four. ็ฐ is a rice field.
A short stroke added on top of ๆฅ. White, not sun.
๐ Beyond N5 โ what comes next
| Kanji | Reading | Meaning | Level |
|---|---|---|---|
| ๆ | ใใ | day of the week | N4 |
| ๆด | ใใ / ใฏใใ | clear weather | N4 |
| ๆ | ใใ / ใใใ | dark | N4 |
| ๆฅ | ใใ ใ / ใฏใ | spring | N4 |
JLPT does not publish official kanji lists by level. These levels follow the commonly used reference lists and are a guide, not a guarantee.
๐ฃ๏ธ Words you will actually meet
Irregular: neither kanji is read as expected. This is a jukujikun, a reading assigned to the word as a whole.
Note ๆฅ is read ใซใก in the first position and ใณ at the end.
๐ฏ How to use this radical in JLPT study
ๆฅ splits into two meaning families, so learn it carefully. Some kanji are about light and weather (ๆ, ๆด, ๆ); others about time and days (ๆ, ๆ, ๆฉ). Meet an unfamiliar kanji with ๆฅ in it and guess 'days or brightness'. You will usually be right. The trap is assuming every kanji with ๆฅ refers to the sun: in ๆ and ๆ the meaning is time, not sunlight. A second frequent slip is writing ๆฅ and ็ฎ with the same number of strokes; ๆฅ has four, ็ฎ has five.
๐ก Teacher's Memory Tip
Picture a little window letting sunlight in, with four sides and a bar in the middle. Wherever you see ๆฅ, think 'sun or time.'
โ Frequently Asked Questions
The ๆฅ radical means 'sun' or 'day.' It evolved from an ancient circle-with-dot sun pictogram into today's rectangular form.
N5 kanji with ๆฅ: ๆฅ (day/sun), ๆ (bright, sun + moon together), ๆฉ (early, sun rising), ๆ (time, contains ๆฅ on the left).
Imagine a small window (โก) with a crossbar, with sunlight streaming through. Any kanji with ๆฅ deals with the sun, daytime, or the passage of time.
Other N5 Radicals
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