生 Kanji: Meaning, Readings and Stroke Order

生: life; birth; live; raw; fresh. JLPT N5; 5 strokes.

Readings

On readings

セイ、ショウ

Kun readings

い.きる、う.まれる、は.える、なま、き

Romaji

sei, shou, ikiru, umareru, haeru, nama, ki

Study notes

生 is one of the kanji with the most readings: it expresses life, birth, growth and that which is raw or unprocessed.

On readings: セイ in 学生 (がくせい, student), 先生 (せんせい, teacher), 人生 (じんせい, life), 生活 (せいかつ, daily life). ショウ in 一生 (いっしょう, whole life), 誕生 (たんじょう, birth), 生涯 (しょうがい, entire existence).

Kun readings: いきる (生きる, to live); うまれる (生まれる, to be born) and うむ (生む, to give birth); はえる (生える, to sprout, grow, said of hair and plants) and はやす (生やす, to let grow, for example beard). なま means 'raw, fresh, from the live': 生卵 (なまたまご, raw egg), 生ビール (なまビール, draught beer). き means 'pure, unrefined': 生地 (きじ, fabric), 生真面目 (きまじめ, very serious).

Special readings: 芝生 (しばふ, meadow) is read as a whole word. 一生懸命 (いっしょうけんめい) means 'with all one's strength'.

Remember: with numbers, 〜年生 (ねんせい) indicates the school year: 一年生 (いちねんせい, first-year student).

Example words

• 先生 (せんせい) — teacher
• 生活 (せいかつ) — daily life; way of living
• 一生 (いっしょう) — one's whole life; lifelong
• 生きる (いきる) — to live
• 生まれる (うまれる) — to be born
• 生む (うむ) — to give birth; to produce
• 生える (はえる) — to grow; to sprout
• 生野菜 (なまやさい) — raw vegetables
• 生糸 (きいと) — raw silk

Example sentences

子どもが生まれました。

kodomo ga umaremashita.

A child was born.

Stroke order

Follow the steps in order. Each new stroke is highlighted.

Stroke paths: KanjiVG, CC BY-SA 3.0. Sequential diagrams derived from the original paths.