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Kanji Detail for 犬 - "dog, spy"

犬

  • Meaning

    犬 means "dog, spy." Also associated with humble term.

    1. Dog - A domesticated animal; a mammal of the canine family.

    2. Humble term - A metaphor for something insignificant; a self-deprecating term; also used to belittle others.

    3. Spy - An informant; a secret agent.

  • Words using 犬

    • 盲導犬 もうどうけん Listen guide dog; seeing-eye dog
    • 愛犬 あいけん Listen pet dog; beloved dog; love of dogs
    • 子犬 こいぬ Listen puppy; small dog

  • Origin of 犬

    A pictograph of a dog leaping up at its master — the dot is the ear (or, as generations of students prefer, the wagging tail).

    How to remember it: The character 大 is a person; add one small dot jumping up beside them — the dog leaping at its owner.

    Sources: en.wiktionary.org · mojinavi.com

  • Tattoo check: 犬

    • Verified meaning: dog, spy
    • Official Jōyō kanji — a standard character every Japanese reader recognises
    • Used in real Japanese given names (read いぬ, いぬはし)
    • Also carries these associations: humble term

    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 犬

    Surnames 犬(いぬ)Listen 犬(いぬはし)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

    dog

    Unihan Unicode Han Database for CJK characters

    dog; radical number 94

    CC-CEDICT A Chinese-English dictionary

    (literary) dog; Kangxi radical 94

    Make Me a Hanzi Open-source Chinese character data

    dog

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

    A dog with dewclaws. Now ordinary dogs are also called 犬. Because they are lowly domestic animals, the humble use them for self-comparison. As in 犬馬之勞 (the labor of a dog or horse).

  • Onyomi

    tip

    ken(ケン) ケン

  • Kunyomi

    tip

    inu(いぬ) いぬ

  • Strokes

    tip

    4 strokes

  • Radical

    tip

    犬 犭 (inu・kemonohen)

  • Related Keywords

    dog humble term spy insignificant person runner to put yourself down agent animal bark belittle breed canine collar deprecating domesticated fetch fur howl informant kennel leash loyal mammal obedience pack paw pet puppy

Sentences including 犬

  • I have a cat and a dog.

  • The dog frightened the children away.

  • Who is going to look after our dog?

  • Who has found a lost dog?

  • Keep away from the dog.

  • That dog made for me.

  • You must take care of your dog.

  • My wife took good care of this dog.

  • There's a dog by the door.

  • Is that a cat or a dog?

Sentences from Japanese classical masterpieces

More kanji with the radical 犬 犭 (inu・kemonohen)

See all kanji with this radical →

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