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Kanji Detail for 可 - "to permit, can"

可

  • Meaning

    可 means "to permit, can." Also associated with good.

    1. Good - Acceptable; satisfactory.

    2. Permit - To allow; to give permission.

    3. Can - To be able to; expressing possibility.

    4. Should - Expressing advisability; ought to.

  • Words using 可

    • 可能 かのう Listen possible; potential; practicable
    • 可能性 かのうせい Listen possibility; chance; likelihood
    • 許可 きょか Listen permission; approval; authorization
    • 認可 にんか Listen approval; license; licence
    • 不可欠 ふかけつ Listen indispensable; essential
    • 不可能 ふかのう Listen impossible
    • 可決 かけつ Listen approval; adoption (of a motion, bill, etc.); passage
    • 不可分 ふかぶん Listen inseparable; indivisible; undetachable

  • Four-character idioms with 可

    • 不可思議 ふかしぎ Listen mystery; something inexplicable; wonder
    • 不可抗力 ふかこうりょく Listen act of God; irresistible force; inevitability
    • 可惜身命 あたらしんみょう Listen valuing one's body and life; holding one's life dear
    • 奇貨可居 きかおくべし Listen you must seize every golden opportunity; strike while the iron is hot; when you find a rare good buy, seize upon it for a future sale at a much higher price
    • 後生可畏 こうせいかい Listen the young should be regarded with respect
    • 紅顔可憐 こうがんかれん Listen youthful and endearing; rosy-cheeked and sweet

  • Tattoo check: 可

    • Verified meaning: to permit, can
    • Official Jōyō kanji — a standard character every Japanese reader recognises
    • Used in real Japanese given names (read かすみ, かなり, は)
    • Also carries these associations: good

    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 可

    Surnames 可(かすみ)Listen 可(かなり)Listen 可(は)Listen

  • Dictionary Citations

    The meaning above is based on the following sources:

    KANJIDIC2 A comprehensive Japanese-English kanji dictionary

    can; passable; approval

    Unihan Unicode Han Database for CJK characters

    may, can, -able; possibly

    CC-CEDICT A Chinese-English dictionary

    (prefix) can; may; able to; -able; to approve; to permit; to suit; (particle used for emphasis) certainly; very; but; however

    Make Me a Hanzi Open-source Chinese character data

    may, can, -able; possibly

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

    To permit. Opposite of 否. | Barely acceptable but with something lacking. (Analects) "Acceptable, but not as good as being poor yet joyful, rich yet loving propriety." | 可汗: An ancient foreign ruler's title. Xiongnu called theirs 單于; Turks called theirs 可汗, referring to their sovereign. 汗 is read like 韓.

  • Onyomi

    tip

    ka(カ) カ

    koku(コク) コク

  • Kunyomi

    tip

    be.ki(べ-き) べ-き

    be.shi(べ-し) べ-し

  • Strokes

    tip

    5 strokes

  • Radical

    tip

    口 (kuchi・kuchihen)

  • Related Keywords

    good to permit can allowed possible should acceptable achievable admissible appropriate attainable doable feasible fitting okay permission permissible proper suitable tolerable viable

Sentences including 可

  • It is next to impossible to go to school.

  • I think it impossible for us to beat him.

  • I got leave to go home.

  • To live without air is impossible.

  • It's almost impossible to work out this problem.

  • This plan is impossible to accomplish.

  • It is impossible to make her understand the theory.

  • There is no living on the island.

  • I think it possible for man to live on the moon.

  • He is impossible to beat.

Sentences from Japanese classical masterpieces

More kanji with the radical 口 (kuchi・kuchihen)

See all kanji with this radical →

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