国 Meaning, Reading, and Vocabulary｜Onyomi コク・Kunyomi くに
国 is a fundamental N5 kanji meaning 'country' or 'nation'.
It is read as 'コク' (onyomi) and 'くに' (kunyomi) and is very commonly used in daily life.
Besides meaning 'country', it can also refer to one's 'hometown' depending on the context.
Kanji at a glance
Core meaning / core image
国 basically means a 'country' with territory and sovereignty. However, when used with the kunyomi くに (kuni) in Japanese, it often refers to the 'hometown' or 'region' where one was born and raised, depending on the context, so pay attention to how it's used.
Kanji structure breakdown
Mnemonic story
This character depicts a box-like enclosure (囗) protecting a precious jewel (玉) inside. The space inside that fence protecting what is precious became a country.
On'yomi and kun'yomi
On reading
Kun reading
Commonly used words
Example sentences
Mini quiz
What is the correct reading for the bolded part in the following sentence? [お正月には**国**へ帰る予定です。]
One-line summary
国 is a basic kanji meaning 'country', and when read as くに (kuni), it can also mean 'hometown', so pay attention to the context.
FAQ
How can I tell if くに (kuni) is being used to mean 'hometown'?
Generally, if it's used with verbs indicating a return home, like '国へ帰る' (to return to one's hometown), or when asking someone's origin within Japan, like 'お国はどちらですか' (Where is your hometown?), it means 'hometown'.
Is it always read as コク (koku) in country names?
Mostly, yes. Country names written in kanji, like 韓国 (かんこく), 中国 (ちゅうごく), and 米国 (べいこく), use the onyomi コク. However, Japan (日本) is read as にほん (nihon) or にっぽん (nippon) and does not include the kanji 国.
