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N3

Kanji 才: meanings, readings, and example words.

2 min read

Kanji 才: genius, years old, cubic shaku

Key takeaways

Kanji 才: genius, years old, cubic shaku. Readings and core meaning.

See vocabulary and examples below.

Kanji at a glance

N3

Meaning

geniusyears oldcubic shaku

On reading

サイ

Radical

Core meaning / core image

Core meaning: 才

genius, years old, cubic shaku

Kanji structure breakdown

Structure breakdown

Mnemonic story

Mnemonic story

The ability to move one's hands (扌) skillfully represents one's innate talent (才). This character is used in the word genius (天才) and also functions as a common counter for years of age.

On'yomi and kun'yomi

On reading

サイ
  • 天才てんさい

    genius / prodigy / natural talent

  • 才能さいのう

    talent / ability / skill

Commonly used words

  • 天才
    てんさい

    genius / prodigy / natural talent

  • 才能
    さいのう

    talent / ability / skill

Example sentences

Example 1

彼は数学の天です。

Translation

He is a genius in mathematics.

Example 2

彼女は天的なアイデアを持っている。

Translation

She has genius-level ideas.

Example 3

彼は音楽の能がある。

Translation

He has talent in music.

Example 4

能を生かして仕事をする。

Translation

Use your talent at work.

Kanji 才: genius, years old, cubic shaku | Daily Nihongo