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Kanji Detail for 義 - "righteousness, justice, meaning"

義

  • Meaning

    義 means "righteousness, justice, meaning."

    1. Righteousness - The right way; moral correctness.

    2. Justice - Fairness and equity; moral rightness.

    3. Meaning - The sense of something; significance.

    4. Duty - What one ought to do; obligation.

    5. Adopted - Not by blood but by bond.

  • Words using 義

    • 主義 しゅぎ Listen doctrine; rule; principle
    • 朝鮮民主主義人民共和国 ちょうせんみんしゅしゅぎじんみんきょうわこく Listen Democratic People's Republic of Korea (North Korea); DPRK
    • 正義 せいぎ Listen justice; right; righteousness
    • 義務 ぎむ Listen duty; obligation; responsibility
    • 民主主義 みんしゅしゅぎ Listen democracy
    • 社会主義 しゃかいしゅぎ Listen socialism
    • 意義 いぎ Listen meaning; significance
    • 名義 めいぎ Listen name (esp. on a deed, contract, work, etc.); formal name; published name

  • Four-character idioms with 義

    • 人道主義 じんどうしゅぎ Listen humanism; humanitarianism
    • 利己主義 りこしゅぎ Listen egoism; egotism; selfishness
    • 大義名分 たいぎめいぶん Listen just cause; good reason; pretext
    • 主義主張 しゅぎしゅちょう Listen one's principles and position
    • 博愛主義 はくあいしゅぎ Listen philanthropism
    • 敵本主義 てきほんしゅぎ Listen diversionary tactics; concealing one's true motives until the last moment

  • Tattoo check: 義

    • Verified meaning: righteousness, justice, meaning
    • Official Jōyō kanji — a standard character every Japanese reader recognises
    • Used in real Japanese given names (read ぎ, ただし, つとむ, のり)

    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 義

    Given names 義(ぎ)Listen 義(ただし)Listen 義(つとむ)Listen 義(のり)Listen 義(まこと)Listen 義(よしのり)Listen 義(よしひろ)Listen 義(よしみ)Listen

    Surnames 義(よし)Listen 義(よしかつ)Listen 義(よしつぐ)Listen 義(よしむら)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

    righteousness; justice; morality; honor; loyalty; meaning

    Unihan Unicode Han Database for CJK characters

    right conduct, righteousness

    CC-CEDICT A Chinese-English dictionary

    surname Yi; (Tw) Italy (abbr. for 義大利|义大利[Yi4 da4 li4])

    Make Me a Hanzi Open-source Chinese character data

    right conduct, propriety; justice

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

    Appropriate. To regulate affairs and things. So that each finds its proper place. | Meaning. The necessary reason in words and actions. And a definite purpose are all called 義. Such as 文義 (textual meaning), 字義 (character meaning), 定義 (definition), 疑義 (questionable meaning). All are this. | Actions without selfish intent are called 義. Such as 義師 (righteous army), 義旗 (banner of righteousness). | Sharing with the public is called 義. Such as 義倉 (public granary), 義學 (free school). | Surpassing conduct is called 義. Such as 義俠 (righteous hero), 義士 (righteous person). | Those bound by grace are called 義. Such as sworn brotherhood is called 結義. Also 義子 means adopted son. Hence things added on top are often called 義. Such as a false hairpiece is called 義髻. | A country name. Abbreviation for Italy. In southern Europe. Also written as 意大利. Abbreviated as 意.

  • Onyomi

    tip

    gi(ギ) ギ

  • Kunyomi

    tip
    none

  • Strokes

    tip

    13 strokes

  • Radical

    tip

    羊 (hitsuji・hitsujihen)

  • Related Keywords

    righteousness justice meaning adopted adoptive appropriate correct duty good translation morality decency equity ethics fairness honesty honor integrity loyalty obligation principle rectitude significance sincerity

Sentences including 義

  • A few people came to the lecture.

  • It is up to us to help those people.

  • It's my duty to help you.

  • The long discussion came to an end at last.

  • I was bound to answer him.

  • He brought his speech to an end.

  • Don't you have a sense of justice?

  • I have to do right by him.

  • He is justice.

  • It's your duty to finish the job.

Sentences from Japanese classical masterpieces

More kanji with the radical 羊 (hitsuji・hitsujihen)

See all kanji with this radical →

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