Onyomi: ギョウ, ケイ · Kunyomi: -がた, かた, かたち, なり · Meanings: form, shape, style
Kanji for form, shape, style
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Find visually similar kanji, commonly confused characters, related meanings, and useful words connected to 形.
形 is made from 彡, meaning “lines or appearance,” and 幵, which suggests something being shaped or arranged. Together they express how something looks on the outside. From this idea, 形 came to mean shape, form, or figure.
The outer lines show how something looks. That visible form is 形.
Focus on the lines that show an object’s outline. That outline or shape is 形.
| Word | Reading | Meaning | Meta |
|---|---|---|---|
| 形 | かたち | form, shape, figure | common JLPT-N4 JLPT-N3 Noun |
| 形 | かた | shape, form, style | Noun, Noun, used as a suffix |
| 形 | なり | style, way, shape, form, appearance, state | Noun, Noun which may take the genitive case particle 'no' |
| 形 | けい | form | Suffix |
| 形容詞 | けいようし | adjective, i-adjective (in Japanese) | common JLPT-N2 Noun |
| 形態 | けいたい | form, shape, figure | common JLPT-N1 Noun |
| 気質 | きしつ | disposition, temperament, nature, mentality, spirit, character, trait, turn of mind | common JLPT-N1 Noun, Noun, used as a suffix |
| 形式 | けいしき | form (as opposed to substance) | common JLPT-N2 Noun |
| 形成 | けいせい | formation, molding, making (up), taking form, giving form to | common JLPT-N1 Noun, Suru verb, Transitive verb |
| 形勢 | けいせい | condition, situation, prospects | common JLPT-N1 Noun |