作
作 — Make
make, production, prepare, build
On’yomiサク (saku)
On’yomiサ (sa)
Kun’yomiつくる (tsukuru)
Kun’yomiつくり (tsukuri)
Kun’yomi-づくり (zukuri)
Stroke order (7 strokes)
Watch the strokes draw themselves in the correct order — numbers mark where each stroke starts. Diagram from KanjiVG (CC BY-SA).
Common words using 作
| Word | Reading | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 作業 | さぎょう sagyou | work; operation; task |
| 作品 | さくひん sakuhin | work (e.g. book, film, painting, composition); piece; production |
| 作家 | さっか sakka | author; writer; novelist |
| 作戦 | さくせん sakusen | tactics; strategy; military operation |
| 制作 | せいさく seisaku | work (film, book); production; creation |
| 工作 | こうさく kousaku | handicraft; work; construction |
Study notes
作 is a JLPT N4 kanji written with 7 strokes. It is taught in Japanese elementary school (grade 2), so native children learn it early — a good sign it appears everywhere. Ranked #103 of the 2,500 most frequent kanji in newspapers. On’yomi (音読み) are Chinese-derived readings mostly used in compound words; kun’yomi (訓読み) are native Japanese readings, with any highlighted part written in hiragana after the kanji (okurigana).
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