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Kanji Detail for 作 - "to make, to cultivate"

作

  • Meaning

    作 means "to make, to cultivate." Also associated with to write.

    1. To make - To create anew.

    2. To write - To compose books.

    3. To cultivate - To farm; to till.

    4. To do - To perform; to accomplish.

    5. To complete - To finish creating.

    6. To establish - To start up.

    7. Behavior - Movement; action; function.

    8. Creation - Something made; a work.

    9. Quality - The quality of what was produced.

  • Words using 作

    • 作品 さくひん Listen work (e.g. book, film, painting, composition); piece; production
    • 作業 さぎょう Listen work; operation; task
    • 作家 さっか Listen author; writer; novelist
    • 作戦 さくせん Listen tactics; strategy; military operation
    • 制作 せいさく Listen work (film, book); production; creation
    • 作る つくる Listen to make; to produce; to manufacture
    • 作曲 さっきょく Listen composition (of music); setting; writing music
    • 工作 こうさく Listen handicraft; work; construction

  • Four-character idioms with 作

    • 偽装工作 ぎそうこうさく Listen diversionary tactics (maneuvering); disguise; hide by camouflage
    • 同化作用 どうかさよう Listen assimilation; metabolism; anabolism
    • 坐作進退 ざさしんたい Listen deportment; behavior; carriage
    • 戯作三昧 げさくざんまい Listen being absorbed in writing popular novels (cheap fiction); being absorbed in writing something to amuse oneself
    • 自作自演 じさくじえん Listen performing a part in one's own play; playing a musical piece that one has written; doing everything by oneself (from preparation to execution)
    • 自壊作用 じかいさよう Listen (the act of) disintegration

  • Tattoo check: 作

    • Verified meaning: to make, to cultivate
    • Official Jōyō kanji — a standard character every Japanese reader recognises
    • Used in real Japanese given names (read さく, さくじ, つくり, つくる)
    • Also carries these associations: to write

    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 作

    Given names 作(さく)Listen 作(つくる)Listen

    Surnames 作(さくじ)Listen 作(つくり)Listen 作(まさや)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

    make; production; prepare; build

    Unihan Unicode Han Database for CJK characters

    make; work; compose, write; act, perform

    CC-CEDICT A Chinese-English dictionary

    (bound form) worker; (bound form) workshop; (slang) troublesome; high-maintenance (person)

    Make Me a Hanzi Open-source Chinese character data

    to make; to write, to compose; to act, to perform

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

    To rise up. Such as 振作精神 (rouse one's spirits). | To do. Also read in departing tone like 佐. The vulgar form is 做. | To create. Creating is called 作. (Doctrine of the Mean) "The father created it, the son continued it."

  • Onyomi

    tip

    sa(サ) サ

    saku(サク) サク

  • Kunyomi

    tip

    duku.ri(でゅく-り) でゅく-り

    tsuku.ru(つく-る) つく-る

    tsukuri(つくり) つくり

  • Strokes

    tip

    7 strokes

  • Radical

    tip

    人 亻 (hito・nimben・hitogashira・hitoyane)

  • Related Keywords

    to make to write to cultivate create produce accomplish establish work product creation behavior action farm build compose construct craft develop manufacture

Sentences including 作

  • Birds make their nests in trees.

  • She is good at making up interesting stories.

  • We made brochures at small cost.

  • Her mother was busy cooking the dinner.

  • I have to cook dinner today.

  • It is something my mother made.

  • I made my son a new suit.

  • Kumi did not make a box.

  • It's a beautiful job.

  • My father made me a nice lunch.

Sentences from Japanese classical masterpieces

More kanji with the radical 人 亻 (hito・nimben・hitogashira・hitoyane)

See all kanji with this radical →

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