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Kanji Detail for 刀 - "sword, knife, blade"

刀

  • Meaning

    刀 means "sword, knife, blade."

    1. Sword - A bladed weapon.

    2. Blade - A cutting edge.

    3. Knife - A cutting instrument.

  • Words using 刀

    • 剃刀 かみそり Listen razor

  • Four-character idioms with 刀

    • 一刀両断 いっとうりょうだん Listen cutting in two with a single stroke; taking decisive action; dealing with decisively
    • 単刀直入 たんとうちょくにゅう Listen straight to the point; point-blank; frank
    • 帯刀御免 たいとうごめん Listen a non-samurai being granted the privilege of wearing a sword (during the Edo period)
    • 快刀乱麻 かいとうらんま Listen solving a problem swiftly and skillfully
    • 苗字帯刀 みょうじたいとう Listen right to bear a surname and to wear a sword (during the Edo period)

  • Origin of 刀

    A pictograph of a single-edged blade with its curved back and cutting edge — the katana's ancestor, drawn in two strokes.

    How to remember it: Two strokes: the spine and the edge — a blade at its simplest. The katana.

    Sources: en.wiktionary.org · mojinavi.com

  • Tattoo check: 刀

    • Verified meaning: sword, knife, blade
    • Official Jōyō kanji — a standard character every Japanese reader recognises
    • Used in real Japanese given names (read かたな, とう)

    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 刀

    Surnames 刀(かたな)Listen 刀(とう)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

    sword; saber; knife

    Unihan Unicode Han Database for CJK characters

    knife; old coin; measure

    CC-CEDICT A Chinese-English dictionary

    surname Dao

    Make Me a Hanzi Open-source Chinese character data

    knife; old coin; measure

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

    A weapon. All tools used for cutting, slicing, chopping, and shaving are also called 刀. | An ancient coin name. Because its shape resembles a knife, it's called 刀.

  • Onyomi

    tip

    toh(トウ) トウ

  • Kunyomi

    tip

    katana(かたな) かたな

    sori(そり) そり

  • Strokes

    tip

    2 strokes

  • Radical

    tip

    刀 刂 (katana・ritto)

  • Related Keywords

    sword blade knife ancient coin carve chop combat cut dagger edge fencing forge hilt iron katana martial arts metal samurai scabbard sever sharp slice steel weapon

Sentences including 刀

  • There is nothing to compare with her beauty.

Sentences from Japanese classical masterpieces

More kanji with the radical 刀 刂 (katana・ritto)

See all kanji with this radical →

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