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Kanji for Darkness
The kanji most commonly used for "Darkness" are 闇、暗、冥.
闇
Kanji that mean Darkness
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闇
dark, darkness, ignorant
Onyomi: an, on Kunyomi: kura.i, yami 17 strokes Jōyō
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暗
dark, ignorant
Also associated with to memorize.
Onyomi: an Kunyomi: ku.reru, kura.i, kura.mu 13 strokes Jōyō
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冥
dark
Also associated with the afterlife, divine power.
Onyomi: mei, myoh Kunyomi: kura.i 10 strokes Jōyō
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幽
dim, secluded, quiet
Onyomi: yuu Kunyomi: fuka.i, kasuka, kura.i, shiro.i 9 strokes Jōyō
暗 is dark as a condition — 暗い, dark or dim, and 暗黒 for total darkness. It extends to what cannot be seen or is done unseen: 暗記 is to memorize, to have something by heart, 暗号 is a code, 暗殺 an assassination.
闇 is darkness as a place or a substance, the dark itself. 暗闇 is pitch darkness and 闇夜 a moonless night. It has also picked up a second life meaning illicit: 闇市 was the black market, and 闇 in front of a word still signals something operating out of sight.
蒙 is not visual darkness at all but ignorance, the unlit mind. It survives mainly in 啓蒙, enlightenment in the sense of educating people out of it. For a single character meaning darkness, 闇 names the thing; 暗 describes a state.
Words using Darkness kanji
Everyday Japanese vocabulary built from the characters above.
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暗闇
くらやみ
darkness; the dark
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暗殺
あんさつ
assassination
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冥福
めいふく
happiness in the next world; heavenly bliss; repose of one's soul
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幽霊
ゆうれい
ghost; specter; spectre
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無闇に
むやみに
thoughtlessly; recklessly; rashly
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真っ暗
まっくら
pitch-dark; pitch-black; completely dark
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明暗
めいあん
light and darkness; light and shade
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暗に
あんに
implicitly; indirectly; tacitly
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暗礁
あんしょう
reef; sunken rock; unforeseen difficulty
Before you use Darkness kanji
闇 is the character for darkness as a thing and the usual choice — but note its modern flavor of the illicit, as in 闇市, black market. 暗 reads as an adjective, dim or dark. 蒙 means ignorance and will not be read as darkness at all.