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Kanji Detail for 善 - "good, kind"

善

  • Meaning

    善 means "good, kind." Also associated with excellent.

    1. Good - Virtuous; morally right.

    2. Excellent - Superior; outstanding.

    3. Kind - Benevolent; friendly.

  • Words using 善

    • 改善 かいぜん Listen betterment; improvement; kaizen (Japanese business philosophy of continuous improvement)
    • 親善 しんぜん Listen friendship; goodwill; friendly relations
    • 善意 ぜんい Listen virtuous mind; good intentions; good will
    • 最善 さいぜん Listen the very best; utmost
    • 善隣 ぜんりん Listen good neighbour; good neighbor
    • 善戦 ぜんせん Listen fighting a good fight; putting up a good fight; fighting bravely
    • 慈善 じぜん Listen charity; benevolence; philanthropy
    • 善悪 ぜんあく Listen right and wrong; good and evil

  • Four-character idioms with 善

    • 勧善懲悪 かんぜんちょうあく Listen rewarding good and punishing evil; poetic justice
    • 体質改善 たいしつかいぜん Listen improvement of one's constitution; reformation
    • 善因善果 ぜんいんぜんか Listen good actions lead to good rewards; one good turn deserves another
    • 善後処置 ぜんごしょち Listen remedial measure; settlement (of matters); dealing with the aftermath
    • 善男善女 ぜんなんぜんにょ Listen pious men and women; religious people; the faithful
    • 善隣友好 ぜんりんゆうこう Listen neighbourly friendship; neighborly friendship

  • Origin of 善

    羊, the sheep — the flawless offering — over words (the old form doubled 言): speech as agreeable as the sacrifice. Goodness began as words worthy of an offering.

    How to remember it: Words spoken over the perfect lamb 羊 — as unblemished as the gift: good.

    Sources: en.wiktionary.org · mojinavi.com

  • Tattoo check: 善

    • Verified meaning: good, kind
    • Official Jōyō kanji — a standard character every Japanese reader recognises
    • Used in real Japanese given names (read ぜん, ぜんじ, ぜんよう, ただし)
    • Also carries these associations: excellent

    A single kanji rarely maps one-to-one onto an English word. Read the meanings and associations above as a set — a character that fits the dictionary definition can still carry a connotation you did not intend.

  • Name readings of 善

    Given names 善(ぜん)Listen 善(ぜんよう)Listen 善(よし)Listen 善(よしあき)Listen

    Surnames 善(ぜんじ)Listen 善(ただし)Listen 善(よしかつ)Listen

  • Compare with other kanji that mean the same thing:

  • Dictionary Citations

    The meaning above is based on the following sources:

    KANJIDIC2 A comprehensive Japanese-English kanji dictionary

    virtuous; good; goodness

    Unihan Unicode Han Database for CJK characters

    good, virtuous, charitable, kind

    CC-CEDICT A Chinese-English dictionary

    good (virtuous); benevolent; well-disposed; good at sth; to improve or perfect

    Make Me a Hanzi Open-source Chinese character data

    good, virtuous, charitable, kind

    XSZD Xuéshēng Zìdiǎn (學生字典) - Student's Dictionary

    Opposite of 惡 (evil). (Doctrine of the Mean) "Concealing evil and promoting good." | Doing well is called 善. Such as one good at calligraphy is called 善書; one good at painting is called 善畫. | Approving of what is good. (Mencius) "If Your Majesty approves of it." | Being friendly is called 善. Such as being friends with someone is called 與某某相善.

  • Onyomi

    tip

    zen(ゼン) ゼン

  • Kunyomi

    tip

    ii(いい) いい

    yo.ku(よ-く) よ-く

    yoi(よい) よい

    yoshi.tosuru(よし-とする) よし-とする

  • Strokes

    tip

    12 strokes

  • Radical

    tip

    口 (kuchi・kuchihen)

  • Related Keywords

    good excellent kind admirable praiseworthy fortunate prosperous harmonious friendly respectable noble virtuous benevolent caring compassionate decent ethical generous gracious honorable moral thoughtful

Sentences including 善

  • I'll have to go and see what i can do.

  • He would do his best.

  • I'll do my best on the test.

  • They are all good men at heart.

  • It is important for them to do their best.

  • Living abroad is the best way to learn a foreign language.

  • What is the best way to put an end to the war?

  • I bought this book at kakuzen's.

  • He did his best , but failed.

  • Do your best , and you will succeed.

Sentences from Japanese classical masterpieces

More kanji with the radical 口 (kuchi・kuchihen)

See all kanji with this radical →

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