Kanji 魔: witch, demon, evil spirit

Key takeaways

Kanji 魔: witch, demon, evil spirit. Readings and core meaning.

See vocabulary and examples below.

Kanji at a glance

魔

Meaning

witchdemonevil spirit

On reading

マ

Radical

鬼

Core meaning / core image

Core meaning: 魔

witch, demon, evil spirit

Kanji structure breakdown

魔

Structure breakdown

麻 + 鬼

Mnemonic story

Imagine a ghost (鬼) lurking within a field of hemp (麻). This spirit represents a demon or an obstacle (魔) that leads people astray. This character is used in words like magic (魔法) and devil (悪魔).

On'yomi and kun'yomi

On reading

マ

お邪魔しますおじゃまします
excuse me for disturbing you
誤魔化すごまかす
to deceive / to falsify / to evade
悪魔あくま
devil / demon / evil spirit
邪魔じゃま
hindrance / obstacle / interference

Commonly used words

お邪魔します
おじゃまします
excuse me for disturbing you
誤魔化す
ごまかす
to deceive / to falsify / to evade
悪魔
あくま
devil / demon / evil spirit
邪魔
じゃま
hindrance / obstacle / interference

Example sentences

Example 1

おじゃまします、失礼します。

Translation

Excuse me for disturbing you, I'll be rude.

Example 2

友達の家におじゃまします。

Translation

I am going to visit my friend’s house.

Example 3

彼は問題を誤魔化そうとした。

Translation

He tried to deceive about the problem.

Example 4

ミスを誤魔化すために嘘をついた。

Translation

He lied to cover up his mistake.

Kanji 魔: witch, demon, evil spirit

Kanji at a glance

Core meaning / core image

Kanji structure breakdown

Mnemonic story

On'yomi and kun'yomi

On reading

Commonly used words

Example sentences

お邪魔します (おじゃまします): meaning and examples

誤魔化す (ごまかす): meaning and examples

悪魔 (あくま): meaning and examples

邪魔 (じゃま): meaning and examples