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Kanji Detail for 健 - "healthy, strong"

健

  • Meaning

    健 means "healthy, strong." Also associated with skilled.

    1. Healthy - In good physical condition.

    2. Strong - Robust; vigorous.

    3. Skilled - Capable; talented.

  • Words using 健

    • 健康 けんこう Listen health; healthy; sound
    • 保健 ほけん Listen preservation of health; hygiene; sanitation
    • 健全 けんぜん Listen healthy; sound; wholesome
    • 穏健 おんけん Listen moderate (view, politics, etc.); temperate; sensible
    • 健闘 けんとう Listen fighting bravely; strenuous efforts
    • 健康保険 けんこうほけん Listen health insurance
    • 保健所 ほけんじょ Listen health care center; health care centre; animal shelter
    • 健在 けんざい Listen in good health; alive and well; going strong

  • Four-character idioms with 健

    • 質実剛健 しつじつごうけん Listen unaffected and sincere, with fortitude and vigor (vigour)

  • Origin of 健

    The person radical 亻 beside 建, "to erect, to build", which lends the reading ken: a person standing firmly built. Health as sound construction.

    How to remember it: A person 亻 built 建 like a well-raised frame — sturdy, sound, healthy.

    Sources: en.wiktionary.org · mojinavi.com

  • Tattoo check: 健

    • Verified meaning: healthy, strong
    • Official Jōyō kanji — a standard character every Japanese reader recognises
    • Used in real Japanese given names (read けん, けんきち, けんじ, けんしょう)
    • Also carries these associations: skilled

    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 健

    Given names 健(けん)Listen 健(けんきち)Listen 健(じぇん)Listen 健(たけし)Listen 健(たける)Listen 健(たつ)Listen

    Surnames 健(けんじ)Listen 健(けんしょう)Listen 健(けんそう)Listen 健(すこやか)Listen 健(たかし)Listen 健(たけ)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

    healthy; health; strength; persistence

    Unihan Unicode Han Database for CJK characters

    strong, robust, healthy; strength

    CC-CEDICT A Chinese-English dictionary

    healthy; to invigorate; to strengthen; to be good at; to be strong in

    Make Me a Hanzi Open-source Chinese character data

    strong, robust, healthy; strength

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

    Strong and powerful. Such as 勇健 (brave and strong), 健婦 (strong woman). Also, being determined in doing things without taking risks is called 穩健 (steady). | Having strong energy is called 健. Such as 康健 (healthy). | Doing something without tiring. Such as 健訟 (litigious), 健談 (talkative).

  • Onyomi

    tip

    ken(ケン) ケン

  • Kunyomi

    tip

    suko.yaka(すこ-やか) すこ-やか

  • Strokes

    tip

    11 strokes

  • Radical

    tip

    人 亻 (hito・nimben・hitogashira・hitoyane)

  • Related Keywords

    healthy strong skilled long-lasting powerful robust athletic energetic fitness hardy endurance resilient vigorous hearty

Sentences including 健

  • We are anxious about your health.

  • Health is more important than money.

  • To talk with a lot of people is good for health.

  • The place i live in is very good for your health.

  • Ken is as tall as bill.

  • Smoking is bad for your health.

  • Smoking is not good for the health.

  • Your mother is anxious about your health.

  • She looks nice and healthy.

  • I exercise because i want to stay healthy.

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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