母
母 — Mother
mother
On’yomiボ (bo)
Kun’yomiはは (haha)
Kun’yomiも (mo)
Stroke order (5 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 母
| Word | Reading | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 母 | はは haha | mother |
| 母親 | ははおや hahaoya | mother |
| お母さん | おかあさん okaasan | mother; mom; mum |
| 父母 | ふぼ fubo | father and mother; parents |
| 母体 | ぼたい botai | mother's body (esp. when pregnant or after giving birth); parent body; parent organization |
| 母子 | ぼし boshi | mother and child |
Study notes
母 is a JLPT N5 kanji written with 5 strokes. It is taught in Japanese elementary school (grade 2), so native children learn it early — a good sign it appears everywhere. Ranked #570 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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