Meaning & readings
deliberation, consultation, debate, consideration
On’yomi ギ
Nanori かた、のり
Origin
This character combines "words" (言) on the left with a sound component (義) on the right that hints at pronunciation. The left side, showing speech or language, makes sense for a character about debate and discussion — it's literally "words" used for deliberation. The right component doesn't add meaning but tells you roughly how to say the character. Together, the character pictures the idea of exchanging words in consultation, which is why it means deliberation or debate.
Common words
Reference
- Strokes
- 20
- Kangxi radical
- 149
- Formation type
- Phono-semantic (meaning + sound hint)
- Grade
- Grade 4 (Kyōiku)
- Frequency rank
- #25 (newspapers)
- Former JLPT
- level 2
- Unicode
- U+08B70