Meaning & readings

fill in, fill up, make good

On’yomi テン、チン
Kun’yomi はま.る、うず.める、は.める、ふさ.ぐ

Origin

This character combines earth or soil on the left with a component meaning true or genuine on the right. The compound suggests the idea of filling earth in properly or completely, as if making it genuinely full or solid. The earth radical indicates this is about ground or material being filled, while the right component reinforces the sense of completeness and authenticity to the action. Over time this combination came to mean filling in, filling up, or making something complete and sound.

13 strokes

Components

  • radical left
  • meaning part right

Reference

Strokes
13
Kangxi radical
32
Formation type
Compound ideographic (combined meanings)
Grade
Jōyō (secondary school)
Frequency rank
Former JLPT
Unicode
U+05861