Kanji 臥: bend down, bow, lie prostrate

Key takeaways

Kanji 臥: bend down, bow, lie prostrate. Readings and core meaning.

See vocabulary and examples below.

Kanji at a glance

臥

Meaning

bend downbowlie prostrate

On reading

が

Kun reading

ふせ.るふ.せるふ.す

Radical

臣

Core meaning / core image

Core meaning: 臥

bend down, bow, lie prostrate

Kanji structure breakdown

臥

Structure breakdown

臣 + 人

Mnemonic story

Imagine a retainer (臣) who is a person (人) bending their body to lie prostrate before a king. It represents the act of bowing down or lying down in a submissive posture.

On'yomi and kun'yomi

Example sentences

Example 1

長い会議でくたびれた。

Translation

I got tired from the long meeting.

Example 2

毎日の仕事でくたびれている。