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The Kanji Map

Kanji

Jōyō kanji, Taught in grade 2

JLPT level: N4

519 of 2500 most used kanji in newspapers

Stroke count: 14

Meaning: song, sing

Kunyomi: うた, うた.う

Onyomi: カ

Composition: 哥 欠

歌

Radical

Radical: 欠

Reading: あくび

Meaning: lack, yawn

Strokes: 4

⽋

Examples

Examples with audio

歌手(かしゅ)   singer

歌詞(かし)   song lyrics

歌舞伎(かぶき)   Japanese classical drama

国歌(こっか)   national anthem

和歌(わか)   Japanese poem

短歌(たんか)   31-syllable Japanese poem

歌(うた)   song

歌う(うたう)   sing

Onyomi Examples

歌劇 (カゲキ) opera

歌曲 (カキョク) melody, tune, song

演歌 (エンカ) enka, traditional-style Japanese popular ballad, troubadour

和歌 (ワカ) waka, classic Japanese poem, esp. a tanka, often 31 morae

Kunyomi Examples

歌 (うた) song, singing, classical Japanese poem (esp. tanka), modern poetry

歌合 (うたあわせ) poetry contest

短歌 (たんか) tanka, 31-mora Japanese poem

替え歌 (かえうた) parody (of a song), new lyrics to an old melody, song parody

歌う (うたう) to sing, to sing of (love, beauty, etc.) in a poem, to express in the form of a poem, to recite (a poem)

歌うたい (うたうたい) singer, vocalist, nagauta singer (in kabuki), singer of noh chants

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