精
精 — Refined
refined, ghost, fairy, energy, vitality, semen
On’yomiセイ (sei)
On’yomiショウ (shou)
Kun’yomiしらげる (shirageru)
Kun’yomiくわしい (kuwashii)
Stroke order (14 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 精
| Word | Reading | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 精神 | せいしん seishin | mind; spirit; soul |
| 精 | せい sei | spirit; sprite; nymph |
| 精神的 | せいしんてき seishinteki | mental; spiritual; emotional |
| 精子 | せいし seishi | sperm; spermatozoon |
| 精密 | せいみつ seimitsu | precise; exact; detailed |
| 受精卵 | じゅせいらん juseiran | fertilized egg; fertilised egg |
Study notes
精 is a JLPT N3 kanji written with 14 strokes. It is taught in Japanese elementary school (grade 5), so native children learn it early — a good sign it appears everywhere. Ranked #752 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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