Kanji - Level 23 - Kanji

Question 1

演

Answer 1

Acting
Radicals: 氵tsunami + 宀 roof + 丁 street + 田 rice paddy + ハ fins
There’s going to be a tsunami. So you get up on your roof. You see people across the street, in a rice paddy. They watch as you put on a pair of fins. And you begin acting. This is your last chance to perform!
Reading: えん
As the acting ends (えん), so do you all.

Question 2

呼

Answer 2

Call
Radicals: 口 mouth + 平 peace
A mouth that wants peace can call for it. If you don’t have a mouth, you can’t call for peace. So use your mouth and call for peace when you can. Peace is great.
Hints
Call for peace. Say it aloud. I’m using my mouth to call for peace!
Reading: よ
But before you call for peace, you must first placate the masses. To do so, you astound them with your yo-yo (よ) skills. Once they are so entranced by how talented you are with a yo-yo, you easily convince them to make peace.

Question 3

崎

Answer 3

Cape
Radicals: 山 mountain + 大 big + 可 lip ring
On top of a big mountain, wearing a lip ring, you see a cape jutting out into the ocean. You’re wearing a lip ring because you’re a cool and edgy individual who likes to climb big mountains. From the top of the big mountain, you see a cape.
Reading: さき
Atop the big mountain overlooking the cape, you see a saw and a key (さき) lying on the ground. What are they doing there?

Question 4

施

Answer 4

Carry out
Radicals: 方 direction + 𠂉 gun + 也 alligator
Moving in the direction of a gun, an alligator can carry out a murder once it reaches it. This alligator wants to kill someone. The alligator wants to carry out their execution.
Readings: し, せ
In order to carry out this murder, the alligator has to sneak up on its prey, so it can shoot it. You look across the water and see a sheep (し) grazing by the shore. The alligator is going to carry out a murder on that sheep!

Question 5

城

Answer 5

Castle
Radicals: 土 dirt + 成 become
Dirt can become a castle at any time. You just have to have the right conditions. The right time, the right people, and any patch of dirt can grow into a huge castle.
Reading: しろ
Once you turn dirt into a castle, that’s all she wrote (しろ). That’s it. It’s done. The story is over.

Question 6

護

Answer 6

Defend
Radicals: 言 say + 艹 flowers + 隹 turkey + 又 stool
They say that flowers held by a turkey on a stool are good to defend yourself with. Even better than a guard dog they say. People are so confused by the turkey sitting on a stool holding flowers that they just lose their will to fight. This turkey is great to defend yourself and your home.
Reading: ご
The only thing this flower-bearing turkey can’t defend against is Godzilla (ご). Godzilla is pretty much undefeatable, especially for a turkey. The turkey is totally unable to defend anything from the mighty Godzilla.

Question 7

鬼

Answer 7

Demon
Radicals: 鬼 demon
The demon radical and the demon kanji are exactly the same! Wicked!
Reading: き
How do you keep a demon locked up? Use a key (き). Use a lock and key and keep that demon locked up safely behind bars so he can’t get out and do bad demon stuff.

Question 8

割

Answer 8

Divide
Radicals: 宀 roof + 生 life + 口 mouth +刂 knife
Under the roof of life a mouth with a knife divides cells to create life.
Readings: わり, わ, さ
As it divides life, the mouth begins to look really familiar. It has big teeth and a crooked mustache… it’s Wario (わり)!
Sometimes Wario cuts himself by accident and just becomes わ (which is all he says too).

Question 9

職

Answer 9

Employment
Radicals: 耳 ear + 音 sound + 戈 drunkard
Reaching your ear is the sound of a drunkard who can’t find employment. You hear him before you see him because he’s behind some trash cans. Being a drunkard, he’s like, super wasted and just kind of rambling to himself, making strange sounds. No wonder he can’t find employment.
Reading: しょく
Since this guy is such a pathetic drunkard, it comes as no shock (しょく) that he can’t find employment. If he did find employment, I would be filled with both shock and awe.

Question 10

秀

Answer 10

Excel
Radicals: 禾 grain + 乃 stairs
If you can eat grains while running up stairs, you’ll excel at everything.
Reading: しゅう
In order to excel at this, though, you need a good pair of shoes (しゅう).

Question 11

贅

Answer 11

Extravagant
Radicals: 土 dirt + 方 direction + 夂 winter + 貝 shellfish
In winter, shellfish head in the direction of dirt, which is what makes them so extravagant.
Reading: ぜい
One of the shellfish stands out to you as being extra extravagant as… it’s holding onto a German saber, a zeiber (ぜい)?!

Question 12

俳

Answer 12

Haiku
Radicals: ｲ leader + 非 criminal
A leader wishing to stop criminals will write a moving haiku. The leader pleads with the criminals to stop their crimes, to look within, and to realize there’s more to life (like poetry!).
Reading: はい
A haiku is still a haiku (はい). Whether it’s written by a law abiding leader or a criminal leader.

Question 13

停

Answer 13

Halt
Radicals: ｲ leader + 亭 restaurant
The leader of the restaurant says, “Halt!” to everyone who wants to come in. The leader looks them up and down. Stares into their eyes. And then, maybe, they may go into the restaurant to eat.
Reading: てい
People only halt because they want this restaurant’s world famous tater (てい) tots. Which is probably why there is a leader out front making sure only people who can really appreciate the tater tots can get in to eat them.

Question 14

宅

Answer 14

House
Radicals: 宀 roof + 丿 slide + 七 seven
You need to go up on the roof and slide down seven times to make this your house. A house isn’t a home until you’ve slid down it exactly seven times, you know.
Reading: たく
If you try to slide down your new house and you land on a tack (たく), that means the house has rejected you. It isn’t your home now. You need to leave and find a new home.

Question 15

痒

Answer 15

Itchy
Radicals: 疒 sick + 羊 sheep
The sick sheep is itchy and it can barely sit still. Help the poor sheep!
Reading: かゆ
Even though the sheep is itchy, look how kah-yute (かゆ) it is! It’s not just cute. It’s kah-yute!

Question 16

裁

Answer 16

Judge
Radicals: 十 cross + 戈 drunkard + 衣 clothes
You place a cross on this drunkard’s clothes to show him you judge him. In fact, you yell, “I JUDGE YOU FOR BEING DRUNK AND WEARING THESE CLOTHES, TAKE THIS!”
Reading: さい
As you judge each other, your cyborg (さい) comes stomping over and slams the drunkard against the wall. With your trusty cyborg coming to your rescue, you can continue to judge this guy all you want.

Question 17

律

Answer 17

Law
Radicals: 彳 loiter + 聿 brush
Loitering around with a brush? Sorry, but you’re breaking the law. If you have a brush, that’s okay. If you’re loitering, that’s okay. If you combine the two? Well… watch your back.
Reading: りつ
Where were you loitering with your brush, breaking the law? Right outside the Ritz (りつ) Hotel. You’d think that it would be okay since you were staying there, but the law is the law.

Question 18

導

Answer 18

Lead
Radicals: 道 road + 寸 measurement
Take a measurement of the road. Hmm. It seems a bit too long. As you measure it, you continue down this road, wondering where it will lead you.
Reading: どう
Where does the road that you’re measuring lead you? An awesome doughnut (どう) shop!

Question 19

革

Answer 19

Leather
Radicals: The leather radical and the leather kanji are exactly the same! Cool!
Reading: かく
One way to get leather is to skin a male chicken, a cock (かく). Not a very efficient way to get leather, but one way nonetheless.

Question 20

乳

Answer 20

Milk
Radicals: ⺤ cleat + 子 child +乚 umbrella
Giving cleats to a child carrying an umbrella is the best way to gather milk. You don’t have any containers, so the child has to hold milk in the upside-down umbrella. The cleats are so the child can run back and forth to transport the milk around.
Reading: にゅう
But where is this child exactly? He’s in New (にゅう) York City. What’s he doing in New York City you ask? Well, he’s milking a cow. Why is there a cow to be milked in New York City? Good question. It’s the end of the world and New York City is the last remaining civilization. This is how people live now. Milk is important.

Question 21

収

Answer 21

Obtain
Radicals: 丩 vines + 又 stool
Wrap vines around a stool to obtain it. Don’t worry about paying for it, sneak into the stool store and tie some vines around the legs. Then when you leave, pull the vines and the stool will come out after. That’s how you obtain a stool!
Reading: しゅう
Today you want to obtain a new pair of shoes (しゅう). You tie your vines around the stool they’re on, and slowly inch them toward the door.

Question 22

現

Answer 22

Present time
Radicals: 王 king + 見 see
The king can see the present time for what it really is. The future isn’t important. The past isn’t important. The present is when everything appears.
Reading: げん
At the present time the king is Genji (げん). The time has finally come for him to get serious, and as they say, there’s no time like the present.

Question 23

備

Answer 23

Provide
Radicals: ｲ leader + 艹 flowers + 厂 cliff + 用 task
The leader put flowers on a cliff. That is their task. It is to provide and equip the cliff with flowers.
Reading: び
Why do they provide and equip the cliff with flowers? It’s all for the bees (び).

Question 24

紫

Answer 24

Purple
Radicals: 止 stop + 匕 spoon + 糸 thread
You stop a spoon from moving by tying it with thread that’s purple. The spoon wouldn’t stop moving around, so you had to use your favorite purple thread to make it stop. It’s the strongest thread you have.
Reading: し
You have to use all of your purple thread, and now you need more. You go into the back yard and call over your purple sheep (し).

Question 25

則

Answer 25

Rules
Radicals: 貝 shellfish +刂 knife
A shellfish with a knife makes all the rules. It isn’t supposed to be making rules, but it has a knife, so who’s going to argue?
Reading: そく
The first rule the shellfish enacts is that all humans take off their socks (そく) and give them to him. Hmm… is this some kind of nasty shellfish? Who would want socks?

Question 26

棚

Answer 26

Shelf
Radicals: 木 tree + 月 moon
A tree with two moons on either side, holding the tree up in a horizontal angle, is a shelf.
Reading: たな
Your moon shelf is great. It’s also huge, because moons are really big. That means you can store a ton-a-stuff (たな) on it.

Question 27

突

Answer 27

Stab
Radicals: 穴 hole + 大 big
In a hole, you see a big monster who wants to stab you. It thrusts its big spikes at you menacingly. No sudden movements now, or you’ll fall right in!
Reading: とつ
You fall in the big hole. What did I say about sudden movements!? It’s totes (とつ) going to stab you for sure. Totes.

Question 28

準

Answer 28

Standard
Radicals: 氵tsunami + 隹 turkey + 十 cross
Riding a tsunami you see a turkey carrying a cross, but that’s pretty standard here. This is your dreamland. You always dream about tsunamis and the turkeys carrying crosses that ride them. This might be strange for other people, but for you it’s pretty normal.
Reading: じゅん
These wacky dreams are only standard fare in June (じゅん) though. You don’t have them any other time of the year, just in June. You don’t know why June is the only time you have dreams about tsunami riding turkeys, but that’s just the way it is.

Question 29

張

Answer 29

Stretch
Radicals: 弓 bow + 長 long
You have a bow and you want to make it long. To do that, you’d naturally just stretch it.
Reading: ちょう
As you stretch the bow, you hear someone running at you. “That’s my bow you’re stretching!” yells Mrs. Chou (ちょう). She is not happy that you’re stretching her things. You should probably try to un-stretch it, put it down, and run before she beats you.

Question 30

優

Answer 30

Superior
Radicals: ｲ leader + 百 hundred + 冖 forehead + 心 heart + 夂 winter
The leader of a hundred foreheads in the heart of winter is superior at being gentle. These hundred foreheads are sensitive, especially in the heart of winter, so the leader must be very gentle. Not just any kind of gentle though—the superior kind of gentle that will keep a hundred foreheads following.
Reading: ゆう
You need to be superior because all of these foreheads belong to youths (ゆう). They don’t know how to take care of themselves, though they try to convince you they can. They’re too young to know any better.

Question 31

沢

Answer 31

Swamp
Radicals: 氵tsunami + 尺 shrimp
A tsunami of shrimp crashes into a swamp. Now the swamp is filled with shrimp. They used to live in the ocean, but the tsunami has carried them to their new home in the swamp.
Reading: たく
Your house was right next to the swamp and on this side of your house you had many a tack (たく) there to hang things on. Now, on every tack there is skewered a shrimp. The force of the tsunami drove them into the tacks on the side of your house.

Question 32

師

Answer 32

Teacher
Radicals: 丶drop + 㠯 bear + 一 ground + 巾 towel
A drop of water falls from a bear onto the ground and needs to be wiped up with a towel. Only a teacher or an expert could get away with getting close to this wet bear to wipe up after it.
Reading: し
The teacher tells you to start with something smaller, after all, you’re not an expert yet. You have to practice on a wet sheep (し). “I became a wet, dangerous animal expert by starting with sheep, you will too!” your teacher says.

Question 33

幹

Answer 33

Tree trunk
Radicals: 𠦝 morning +𠆢 hat + 干 dry
In the morning, if you want your hat to dry, you need to hang it on a tree trunk. In the morning, everything is covered in dew. The grass is wet, the leaves are wet, but the tree trunk isn’t wet! It was protected by the rest of the tree, so you can hang your hat there to dry.
Reading: かん
You lean against the tree trunk, waiting for your hat to dry, and suddenly you realize Genghis Khan (かん) is on the other side of it. You look around and see that all of the tree trunks around you have Mongols drying their hats under them.

Question 34

看

Answer 34

Watch over
Radicals: 手 hand + 目 eye
Put your hand over your eye to watch over others.
Reading: かん
As you watch over your friends and neighbors you see movement in the distance. Oh no, it’s Genghis Khan (かん) and his army!