Onyomi: シチ, シツ, チ · Kunyomi: ただ.す, たち, もと, わりふ · Meanings: matter, quality, substance, temperament
Kanji for matter, quality, substance, temperament
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The kanji 質 combines the “shell/money” radical (貝) with the character for “straight” or “substance” (責), symbolizing value or something offered honestly. In ancient times, it represented goods, money, or materials of worth. 質 came to mean quality, substance, or nature, capturing value, reliability, and essence.
Valuable goods or money — 質 means quality, substance, or the nature of something.
Imagine examining a valuable item to see its true quality — that’s 質, the kanji for quality and substance.
| Word | Reading | Meaning | Meta |
|---|---|---|---|
| 質 | しつ | quality, value | common JLPT-N3 Noun, Noun, used as a suffix |
| 質 | たち | nature (of a person), disposition, temperament | Noun |
| 質 | しち | pawn, pawned article | Noun |
| 質問 | しつもん | question, inquiry, enquiry | common JLPT-N5 Noun, Suru verb, Transitive verb, Intransitive verb, Noun which may take the genitive case particle 'no' |
| 質素 | しっそ | simple, plain | common JLPT-N1 Na-adjective (keiyodoshi), Noun |
| 質屋 | しちや | pawnshop | common Noun |
| 質疑 | しつぎ | question | common JLPT-N1 Noun, Suru verb |
| たちの悪い | たちのわるい | of bad character, ill-natured, nasty, vicious, wicked, malignant | Expressions (phrases, clauses, etc.), Noun or verb acting prenominally |
| 質問攻め | しつもんぜめ | barrage of questions | Noun |
| タチ悪い | たちわるい | in bad taste, problematic, of poor character | Expressions (phrases, clauses, etc.), I-adjective (keiyoushi) |