Meaning & readings

small low table, tray

On’yomi ゼン、セン
Kun’yomi かしわ、すす.める、そな.える
Nanori ぜ、よし

Origin

This character combines the flesh radical 月 on the left with 善, which means "good" or "virtuous," on the right. In ancient times, a small low table used for serving food was considered a refined, good thing — a proper piece of furniture associated with respectful dining practices. The left component 月 marks this as something related to the body or food, while the right component 善 conveys the sense of something proper or well-made. Together, these parts visually represent a proper, good table for serving — which is what the character means.

膳 16 strokes

Components

  • 月 radical left
  • 善 meaning part right

Reference

Strokes
16
Kangxi radical
130
Formation type
Compound ideographic (combined meanings)
Grade
Jōyō (secondary school)
Frequency rank
#2120 (newspapers)
Former JLPT
—
Unicode
U+081B3