Tuttle Learning Japanese Kanji. Glen Nolan Grant
Meaning
Small/Little.
Remembering this kanji
The dwarf spoke, his words SMALL comfort: “If you be going after the miniature lava whale,” he said, “you’d best toss your harpoon in that volcano over yonder. Your chances of landing him are SMALL, though, given that he’s so… SMALL.”
Common Pronunciations
Common ON reading: SHŌ (ショウ)
Common kun reading: chii (ちい); ko (こ)
SHŌ and ko are the readings most often found in compounds, chii only being used in the first example below.
kun-yomi suggestions: “cheeee se!”; “co at”
Create your on-yomi keyword and enter it in the table at the back of the book. After that, write your sentence to remember the on-yomi and kun-yomi readings in the box below.
Less Common Pronunciations
Less common ON reading: none
Less Common kun reading: o (お)
| COMMON WORDS AND COMPOUNDS | ||
| 小さい | small | chii·sai ちい.さい |
| 小春 | small + spring = Indian summer | ko·haru こ.はる |
| 小国 | small + country = small country | SHŌ·KOKU ショウ.コク |
| 小高い | small + tall = slightly elevated | ko daka.i こだか.い |
| 最小 | most + small = smallest | SAI·SHŌ サイ.ショウ |
| SAMPLE SENTENCE: | ||||||
| あの | 車 | は | とても | 小さい | です | ね。 |
| ano | kuruma | wa | totemo | chii·sai | desu | ne. |
| that | car | really | small | isn’t | it | |
| = That car is really small, isn’t it? |
CHAPTER 1 REVIEW EXERCISES
A. Please match the following kanji to their meanings.
| 1. 人 | a. Rotate |
| 2. 女 | b. Large |
| 3. 月 | c. Woman |
| 4. 木 | d. Mouth |
| 5. 大 | e. Person |
| 6. ニ | f. Two |
| 7. 回 | g. Moon |
| 8. 小 | h. Three |
| 9. 三 | i. Tree |
| 10. ロ | j. Small |
B. Please match the following meanings to their kanji, and these to their on or kun-yomi
| 1. Bright | a. 白 | 1. yama (やま) |
| 2. Five | b. 目 | 2. ICHI (イチ） |
| 3. White | c. 山 | 3. me (め） |
| 4. Four | d. 八 | 4. hi (ひ) |
| 5. Eye | e. 日 | 5. GO (ゴ） |
| 6. Middle | f. 一 | 6. HACHI (ハチ) |
| 7. Mountain | g. 明 | 7. SHI (シ) |
| 8. One | h. 中 | 8. aka (あか） |
| 9. Eight | i. 四 | 9. naka (なか） |
| 10. Sun | j. 五 | 10. HAKU (ハク) |
C. Please choose the best answer(s) to the following questions.
1. Which of the following readings apply to the kanji 人?
a. Ō (オウ)
b. hito (ひと）
c. NIN (ニン）
d. JIN (ジン)
e. hi (ひ)
2. Where is the most appropriate place to go in a spaceship?
a. 人
b. 目
c. 月
d. ロ
e. 木
3. Which of the following readings apply to the kanji 女 ?
a. ZEN (ゼン）
b. SHUN (シュン）
c. uchi (うら）
d. JO (ジョ)
e. onna (おんな）
4. Which of the following readings apply to the kanji 口 ?
a. KŌ (コウ）
b. haru (はる)
c. SHI (シ)
d. kuchi (くち）
e. Ō (オウ）
5. Which of the following readings apply to the kanji 日 ?
a. hi (ひ)
b. to (と)
c. KOKU (コク）
d. JITSU (ジツ）
e. NICHI (ニチ）
D. Please answer the following questions.