Onyomi: ザイ · Kunyomi: つみ · Meanings: blame, crime, fault, guilt, offense, sin
Kanji for blame, crime, fault, guilt, offense
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The kanji 罪 is built from the net radical 罒 on top and 非 underneath. In ancient times, 罒 represented a physical net used to capture animals—or metaphorically, to trap a person. The lower part 非 originally showed two wings turned away from each other, symbolizing “wrong,” “not,” or “fault.” When these parts were combined, the meaning became the idea of being caught in wrongdoing: someone trapped by their own misdeed. The character came to represent guilt, crime, or sin—something that binds or ensnares a person because of a wrong act.
A net (罒) placed over the symbol for wrongdoing (非). Together they express the idea of being caught for doing something wrong—guilt or crime.
Imagine a big net (罒) falling over someone the moment they do something wrong (非). That trapped feeling is 罪 — guilt or crime.
| Word | Reading | Meaning | Meta |
|---|---|---|---|
| 罪 | つみ | crime, sin, wrongdoing, indiscretion | common JLPT-N3 Noun, Na-adjective (keiyodoshi), Noun which may take the genitive case particle 'no' |
| 罪 | ざい | crime | Suffix |
| 罪人 | ざいにん | criminal, lawbreaker, wrongdoer, offender | Noun |
| 罪悪 | ざいあく | crime, sin, vice | Noun |
| 罪滅ぼし | つみほろぼし | atonement (for one's sins), expiation, making amends, making up for (a misdeed) | Noun |
| 罪状 | ざいじょう | (nature of a) crime, (criminal) charge | Noun |
| 罪悪感 | ざいあくかん | feelings of guilt | Noun |
| 罪名 | ざいめい | name of a crime, charge | Noun |
| 罪人 | つみびと | sinner, evildoer, wrongdoer | Noun |
| 罪を着せる | つみをきせる | to pin a crime on | Expressions (phrases, clauses, etc.), Ichidan verb |