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Kanji Detail for 探 - "to search, to probe"

探

  • Meaning

    探 means "to search, to probe." Also associated with to explore.

    1. Search - To look for; to seek.

    2. Explore - To investigate; to examine.

    3. Probe - To search deeply; to investigate.

  • Words using 探

    • 探検 たんけん Listen exploration; expedition
    • 探査 たんさ Listen probe; inquiry; enquiry
    • 探す さがす Listen to search for; to look for; to hunt for
    • 探偵 たんてい Listen detective; investigator; sleuth
    • 探求 たんきゅう Listen search; quest; pursuit
    • 手探り てさぐり Listen fumbling; groping
    • 探究 たんきゅう Listen research; investigation; enquiry
    • 探る さぐる Listen to feel around for; to fumble for; to grope for

  • Four-character idioms with 探

    • 盟神探湯 めいしんたんとう Listen trial by hot water; putting a person's hand in boiling water to determine their guilt or innocence (with the belief that the innocent would not be scalded)

  • Tattoo check: 探

    • Verified meaning: to search, to probe
    • Official Jōyō kanji — a standard character every Japanese reader recognises
    • Used in real Japanese given names (read いおり, いく, もとむ)
    • Also carries these associations: to explore

    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 探

    Given names 探(もとむ)Listen

    Surnames 探(いおり)Listen 探(いく)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

    grope; search; look for

    Unihan Unicode Han Database for CJK characters

    find, locate; search, grope for

    CC-CEDICT A Chinese-English dictionary

    to explore; to search out; to scout; to visit; to stretch forward

    Make Me a Hanzi Open-source Chinese character data

    to find, to locate; to grope for, to search for

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

    To search. | Reaching far to take. Such as 探源. | To test. Trying is 探. Such as 探問口氣. | To spy. Such as 窺探, 偵探. | To visit. Such as 探親, 探友. Searching for is also 探. Such as 探梅, 探花. Also, in old imperial examinations, the third place in the palace exam was 探花.

  • Onyomi

    tip

    tan(タン) タン

  • Kunyomi

    tip

    saga.su(さが-す) さが-す

    sagu.ru(さぐ-る) さぐ-る

  • Strokes

    tip

    11 strokes

  • Radical

    tip

    手 扌 (te・tehen)

  • Related Keywords

    search explore probe inquire seek look for delve discover examine find hunt inspect investigate pursue quest scout scrutinize study survey trace track

Sentences including 探

  • I'm looking for you.

  • He moved to new york , where he looked for a job.

  • May i help you?

  • I felt my way to the door.

  • I found a rare book i had been looking for.

  • I looked for a place in which to sleep.

  • I have to find it.

  • Who was looking for the record shop?

  • You are the very person i have been looking for.

  • I'm looking for a gift for my father.

Sentences from Japanese classical masterpieces

More kanji with the radical 手 扌 (te・tehen)

See all kanji with this radical →

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