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Kanji Detail for 背 - "back"

背

  • Meaning

    背 means "back." Also associated with to betray, to abandon.

    1. Back - The spine; the dorsal side.

    2. Behind - The rear; the reverse.

    3. Betray - To turn against; to abandon.

    4. Height - Stature; body length.

  • Words using 背

    • 背景 はいけい Listen background; scenery; backdrop
    • 背中 せなか Listen back (of the body)
    • 背任 はいにん Listen breach of trust; malfeasance; malpractice
    • 背後 はいご Listen back; rear; background
    • 背番号 せばんごう Listen number on the back of a player's uniform; uniform number; shirt number
    • 背筋 せすじ Listen spine; line of the backbone; seam down the back (of clothing)
    • 背泳ぎ せおよぎ Listen backstroke (swimming)
    • 背信 はいしん Listen betrayal; infidelity

  • Four-character idioms with 背

    • 二律背反 にりつはいはん Listen antinomy; self-contradiction; either-or situation
    • 中肉中背 ちゅうにくちゅうぜい Listen medium build
    • 眼光紙背 がんこうしはい Listen reading between the lines
    • 面向不背 めんこうふはい Listen flawless
    • 面従腹背 めんじゅうふくはい Listen pretending to obey but secretly betraying (someone)

  • Tattoo check: 背

    • Verified meaning: back
    • Official Jōyō kanji — a standard character every Japanese reader recognises
    • Also carries these associations: to betray, to abandon

    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.

  • Dictionary Citations

    The meaning above is based on the following sources:

    KANJIDIC2 A comprehensive Japanese-English kanji dictionary

    stature; height; back; behind; disobey; defy; go back on; rebel

    Unihan Unicode Han Database for CJK characters

    back; back side; behind; betray

    CC-CEDICT A Chinese-English dictionary

    variant of 背[bei1]

    Make Me a Hanzi Open-source Chinese character data

    back, backside; to betray, to violate

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

    The side opposite to the chest is called 背 (back). The portion from neck to waist. The human back is at the rear. Hence the rear is also called 背. Such as behind a house is called 屋背. Animals' backs face upward. Hence the top is also called 背. Such as the top of a bridge is called 橋背, the top of a boat is called 篷背. All are this. | The reverse side of anything is called 背. Such as 紙背 (back of paper), 葉背 (underside of leaf). | To turn one's back to something. Hence all going against is called 背. Such as 背盟 (break an oath), 背德 (act against virtue). | Abandoning and leaving is also called 背. Such as calling death 見背 (to depart). | Colloquially, silently reciting what one has studied is called 背. Anciently written as 倍. Seen in (Rites of Zhou).

  • Onyomi

    tip

    hai(ハイ) ハイ

  • Kunyomi

    tip

    se(せ) せ

    sei(せい) せい

    somu.keru(そむ-ける) そむ-ける

    somu.ku(そむ-く) そむ-く

  • Strokes

    tip

    9 strokes

  • Radical

    tip

    肉 月 (niku・nikuzuki)

  • Related Keywords

    back abandon betray behind height dorsal lumbar posture rear reverse spine stature support

Sentences including 背

  • He is as tall as any boy in his class.

  • You've grown so tall.

  • Unlike her mother , she is tall.

  • Ken is as tall as bill.

  • Tony is a very tall boy.

  • Kumiko is as tall as tom.

  • She felt someone touch her back.

  • He is tall , but his brother is much taller.

  • I am very tall.

  • No boy in the class is as tall as bill.

Sentences from Japanese classical masterpieces

More kanji with the radical 肉 月 (niku・nikuzuki)

See all kanji with this radical →

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