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Kanji for Big
The kanji most commonly used for "Big" are 大、巨、太.
大
Kanji that mean Big
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大
big, greatly
Also associated with excellent.
Onyomi: dai, tai Kunyomi: oo, oo.ini, oo.kii 3 strokes Jōyō
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巨
large
Also associated with many, why.
Onyomi: kyo 5 strokes Jōyō
-
太
thick
Also associated with very, great.
Onyomi: ta, tai Kunyomi: futo.i, futo.ru 4 strokes Jōyō
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壮
robust, manly, grand
Also associated with strength.
Onyomi: soh Kunyomi: sakan 6 strokes Jōyō
大 is the default. It is big in every ordinary sense and among the first characters anyone learns — 大きい (big), 大学 (university), 偉大 (great). It also works as an intensifier, so 大成功 is a huge success rather than a physically large one.
巨 is bigness as towering scale, and in modern writing it heads compounds rather than standing alone: 巨大 (enormous), 巨人 (a giant). Where 大 is neutral, 巨 is emphatic.
太 is big as thickness. 太い is thick or stout, and the character means great in 太陽 (the sun) and 太平洋 (the Pacific Ocean). It is one stroke from 大 in shape and quite different in use.
壮 is size as vigor — robust, magnificent, in the prime of life. 壮大 is grand in scale and 壮健 is hale and hearty. It describes the impression a large thing makes rather than its measurements.
Words using Big kanji
Everyday Japanese vocabulary built from the characters above.
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大会
たいかい
mass meeting; convention; rally
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巨人
きょじん
giant; great man; Tokyo Giants (baseball team)
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太陽
たいよう
Sun
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壮大
そうだい
magnificent; grand; majestic
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大手
おおて
major company; big company; front castle gate
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巨大
きょだい
huge; gigantic; enormous
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皇太子
こうたいし
crown prince
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悲壮
ひそう
tragic but brave; heroic; grim
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拡大
かくだい
expansion; extension; magnification
Before you use Big kanji
大 is safe and universally read as big, though it is plain to the point of blankness — an extremely ordinary character. 巨 rarely stands alone. 太 will be read as thick or fat before it is read as great, so it is a risky choice on a person.