Kanji 私: private, I, me
Kanji 私: private, I, me. Readings and core meaning.
See vocabulary and examples below.
Kanji at a glance
Core meaning / core image
private, I, me
Kanji structure breakdown
Mnemonic story
The character combines grain (禾) and private (厶), representing the act of keeping harvested grain for oneself. Since grain was the most important personal property in the past, it came to mean 'private' and eventually 'I' or 'me'.