Japanese word

訓

Pronunciation

Romajikun

Meaning

  • nounnative Japanese reading

Example

この漢字の訓は何ですか。ko no kan ji no kun wa nan de su ka

What is the kun reading of this kanji?

Illustration for 訓 (native Japanese reading)

More examples

辞書でこの漢字の訓を調べます。ji sho de ko no kan ji no kun o shira be ma su

I look up the kun reading of this kanji in a dictionary.

Core concept

訓 (kun, "native Japanese reading") refers to a reading that expresses a kanji's meaning with a native Japanese word rather than a Chinese-derived sound.

Common phrases

  • 漢字の訓kan ji no kun

    the kun reading of a kanji

  • 訓を調べるkun o shira be ru

    look up the kun reading

Similar words

訓読みkunyomi: The practice of reading a kanji with a native Japanese word for its meaning.

Definition in Japanese

漢字の意味を日本語本来の語で表した読み方。kan ji no i mi o nihon go hon rai no go de arawa shi ta yo mi kata

Word origin

As a Sino-Japanese word, 訓 (kun, "explanation" or "instruction") uses the character's Sino-Japanese reading kun and applies its sense of explaining a kanji's meaning to a native Japanese reading.

Usage tips

  • The noun 訓 (kun, "native reading") appears in conversations about dictionaries, names, and signs because one kanji can have different readings in different words.

Word lists with this word