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Kanji Detail for 望 - "hope, full moon"

望

  • Meaning

    望 means "hope, full moon." Also associated with gaze.

    1. Hope - To desire; to wish.

    2. Gaze - To look into the distance.

    3. Full moon - The moon when completely round.

  • Words using 望

    • 要望 ようぼう Listen demand for; request
    • 展望 てんぼう Listen view; outlook; prospect
    • 絶望 ぜつぼう Listen despair; hopelessness
    • 志望 しぼう Listen wish; desire; ambition
    • 望み のぞみ Listen wish; desire; hope
    • 失望 しつぼう Listen disappointment; despair
    • 望月 もちづき Listen full moon; moon on the 15th day of the month (by the lunar calendar); full moon of the eighth lunar month
    • 有望 ゆうぼう Listen promising; hopeful; full of promise

  • Four-character idioms with 望

    • 一望千里 いちぼうせんり Listen sweeping view of the eye; boundless expanse
    • 前途多望 ぜんとたぼう Listen promising (rosy, bright) future; offering promising prospects
    • 前途有望 ぜんとゆうぼう Listen promising future
    • 失望落胆 しつぼうらくたん Listen being disappointed and disheartened

  • Origin of 望

    壬, a person standing tall on the ground, with 月, the moon, and 亡 lending the reading bō: someone on tiptoe gazing at the far moon. To hope is to look at what you cannot yet reach.

    How to remember it: On tiptoe, eyes on the moon 月 — hope is a posture: looking far.

    Sources: en.wiktionary.org · mojinavi.com

  • Tattoo check: 望

    • Verified meaning: hope, full moon
    • Official Jōyō kanji — a standard character every Japanese reader recognises
    • Used in real Japanese given names (read あきら, すえたけ, すえまつ, ねがい)
    • Also carries these associations: gaze

    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 望

    Given names 望(あきら)Listen 望(ねがい)Listen 望(のぞみ)Listen 望(のぞむ)Listen 望(のぼる)Listen 望(ぼう)Listen 望(まどか)Listen 望(みつる)Listen

    Surnames 望(すえたけ)Listen 望(すえまつ)Listen 望(ほうじょう)Listen 望(もう)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

    ambition; full moon; hope; desire; aspire to; expect

    Unihan Unicode Han Database for CJK characters

    to look at, look forward; to hope, expect

    CC-CEDICT A Chinese-English dictionary

    full moon; to hope; to expect; to visit; to gaze (into the distance); to look towards; towards

    Make Me a Hanzi Open-source Chinese character data

    to expect, to hope, to look forward to

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

    To look into the distance. Such as 瞻望 (to gaze), 眺望 (to look out). | To be looked up to is called 望. Such as 名望 (reputation), 威望 (prestige). | Meaning high expectation. Such as 責望 (to blame for not meeting expectations), 怨望 (resentful expectation). | Meaning hope and desire. Such as 大喜過望 means joy exceeding expectations. Also 失望 (disappointment), 絕望 (despair) have this meaning. | When the sun and moon face each other, it is called 望. This occurs around the fifteenth of each lunar month. Hence the fifteenth is called 望日 (full moon day).

  • Onyomi

    tip

    boh(ボウ) ボウ

    moh(モウ) モウ

  • Kunyomi

    tip

    mochi(もち) もち

    nozo.mu(のぞ-む) のぞ-む

  • Strokes

    tip

    11 strokes

  • Radical

    tip

    月 (tsuki・tsukihen)

  • Related Keywords

    hope gaze full moon popularity trust respect resent bitter yearn long for wish desire ambition aspiration craving expectation longing look lunar prospect anticipation

Sentences including 望

  • Her words gave me hope.

  • The dream of yesterday is the hope of today.

  • He is anxious for her to come.

  • You should not give up your hope.

  • My wish is to be a singer.

  • She is keen to go abroad.

  • I hope for your success.

  • He hoped to succeed.

  • We were disappointed in him.

  • Do you want a seat by the window?

Sentences from Japanese classical masterpieces

More kanji with the radical 月 (tsuki・tsukihen)

See all kanji with this radical →

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