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Kanji Detail for 薄 - "thin, to thin, sparse"

薄

  • Meaning

    薄 means "thin, to thin, sparse."

    1. Thin - Not thick; light; pale; faint.

    2. Sparse - Little content; low concentration; scarce; slight.

    3. To thin - To belittle; to look down upon; to despise.

    4. To fade - To diminish; to weaken; to lessen.

    5. To approach - To draw near; to reach.

    6. Pampas grass - A perennial grass; one of the seven autumn flowers.

  • Words using 薄

    • 希薄 きはく Listen thin (air); weak (liquid); dilute
    • 薄れる うすれる Listen to fade; to become dim
    • 薄い うすい Listen thin (of an object); pale; light
    • 精神薄弱 せいしんはくじゃく Listen feeble-mindedness; intellectual disability
    • 手薄 てうす Listen shorthanded; short of hands; undermanned
    • 肉薄 にくはく Listen closing in on (the enemy, first place, etc.); coming close to; pressing hard
    • 薄暗い うすぐらい Listen dim; gloomy
    • 軽薄 けいはく Listen frivolous; flippant; superficial

  • Four-character idioms with 薄

    • 薄利多売 はくりたばい Listen small profits and quick returns
    • 佳人薄命 かじんはくめい Listen beauties die young; beauty and luck seldom go together
    • 意志薄弱 いしはくじゃく Listen weak-willed; lacking a purpose; lacking will power to be patient, purposeful, or resolute
    • 残忍酷薄 ざんにんこくはく Listen cruel; heartless; brutal
    • 皮相浅薄 ひそうせんぱく Listen shallow and unwise; superficial and thoughtless
    • 美人薄命 びじんはくめい Listen beauty and fortune seldom go together; the beautiful die young

  • Tattoo check: 薄

    • Verified meaning: thin, to thin, sparse
    • Official Jōyō kanji — a standard character every Japanese reader recognises
    • Used in real Japanese given names (read うす, うすい, うすき, すすき)

    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 薄

    Surnames 薄(うす)Listen 薄(うすい)Listen 薄(うすき)Listen 薄(すすき)Listen 薄(すずき)Listen 薄(たかうす)Listen 薄(はく)Listen

  • Dictionary Citations

    The meaning above is based on the following sources:

    KANJIDIC2 A comprehensive Japanese-English kanji dictionary

    dilute; thin; weak (tea); pampas grass

    Unihan Unicode Han Database for CJK characters

    thin, slight, weak; poor, stingy

    CC-CEDICT A Chinese-English dictionary

    surname Bo

    Make Me a Hanzi Open-source Chinese character data

    thin, slight; meager, weak; poor, stingy

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

    Grass growing in clusters is called 薄. 林薄 refers to places where plants and trees grow densely. | A screen or curtain. Such as saying officials who cannot manage their households have 帷薄不修 (unkempt curtains). Based on Jia Yi's "Treatise on Governing the State." Also silkworm screens were anciently called 薄. Also written as 箔 or 簿. | The opposite of thick. When the distance between two surfaces of an object is small it is called 薄 (thin). Such as 薄膜 (thin film), 薄冰 (thin ice). Hammering and pressing substances to be like paper is also called 薄. Such as 金薄 (gold leaf), 錫薄 (tin foil). Interchangeable with 泊. | Light or dilute. Not thick is called 薄. Such as 薄酒 (weak wine), 薄味 (light flavor). Light makeup is also called 薄粧. | Slight or minor. Such as 薄命 (ill-fated), 薄福 (little blessing), 薄情 (heartless), 薄禮 (small gift). Also when human morals decline it is called 薄. Such as 輕薄 (frivolous), 刻薄 (harsh). When customs deteriorate, it is called 薄俗 (shallow customs). | To look down upon. Such as 薄視 (despise), 薄待 (treat poorly). | To encroach. Such as 日月之薄蝕 (eclipse of sun and moon). Also approaching evening is called 薄暮. Like saying 侵晨 (approaching dawn). Also read like 博. Has the meaning of approaching. Such as in the Zuo Zhuan, "薄而觀之" (approaching to observe). This is the meaning. | An initial particle. Meaning "just" or "somewhat." The Book of Odes says "薄污我私" (just wash my private clothes), "薄澣我衣" (just wash my clothes). All have this meaning.

  • Onyomi

    tip

    haku(ハク) ハク

  • Kunyomi

    tip

    susuki(すすき) すすき

    u.su(うす) うす

    usu.i(うす-い) うす-い

    usu.maru(うす-まる) うす-まる

    usu.meru(うす-める) うす-める

    usu.ra(うす-ら) うす-ら

    usu.ragu(うす-らぐ) うす-らぐ

    usu.reru(うす-れる) うす-れる

  • Strokes

    tip

    16 strokes

  • Radical

    tip

    艸 艹 (kusa・kusakammuri・soko)

  • Related Keywords

    thin to thin sparse to approach to fade dilute foxtail millet humiliate pampas grass wane faint pale light weak scarce meager slight flimsy delicate translucent

Sentences including 薄

  • I'd like my coffee weak.

  • I dress lightly all the time.

  • She is always cold-hearted.

  • There is little hope of my success.

  • It's impossible to work in a room this dim.

Sentences from Japanese classical masterpieces

More kanji with the radical 艸 艹 (kusa・kusakammuri・soko)

See all kanji with this radical →

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