耳
耳 — Ear
ear
On’yomiジ (ji)
Kun’yomiみみ (mimi)
Stroke order (6 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 耳
| Word | Reading | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 耳 | みみ mimi | ear; hearing; ear (for music, etc.) |
| 耳障り | みみざわり mimizawari | hard (on the ears); offensive (to the ear); rasping |
| 耳鼻科 | じびか jibika | otolaryngology; ear, nose, and throat department |
| 耳元 | みみもと mimimoto | close to the ear |
| 耳より | みみより mimiyori | welcome (news); inviting; encouraging |
| 耳目 | じもく jimoku | eyes and ears; seeing and hearing; one's attention |
Study notes
耳 is a JLPT N3 kanji written with 6 strokes. It is taught in Japanese elementary school (grade 1), so native children learn it early — a good sign it appears everywhere. Ranked #1328 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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