Meaning & readings

commandment

On’yomi カイ
Kun’yomi いまし.める

Origin

This character combines the image of a weapon or halberd (戈) with hands or palms (廾) to show the idea of restraint and warning. The two weapons framing the hands suggest being held back or kept in check, like a guard preventing someone from acting carelessly. This visual arrangement of restraint evolved into the meaning of a commandment or warning—rules that keep people from straying. The character's shape essentially shows the physical act of stopping or cautioning someone, which is why it carries meanings related to discipline and moral precepts.

AI-generated (claude-haiku-4-5), not yet reviewed. Formation type (automated guess): Compound ideographic (combined meanings).

7 strokes

Components

  • radical top-left wrap
  • meaning part tarec
  • radical top-left wrap

Common words

  • 戒告 かいこく admonition; warning
  • 戒律 かいりつ (religious) precept; discipline
  • 訓戒 くんかい warning; admonition
  • 警戒 けいかい vigilance; caution
  • 厳戒 げんかい strict guard
  • 懲戒 ちょうかい discipline; punishment
  • 戒め いましめ caution; admonition
  • 戒める いましめる to warn against; to caution against

Reference

Strokes
7
Kangxi radical
62
Grade
Jōyō (secondary school)
Frequency rank
#1062 (newspapers)
Former JLPT
level 1
Unicode
U+06212