酸 means “acid, sour”

さん · san

Also: bitterness, tart

Kun'yomi (Japanese reading)

すい

On'yomi (Chinese reading)

サン

JLPT N1 · Taught in grade 5 · 14 strokes

The story

A sake jar (酉) beside 夋: picture rice wine left so long it turns sour. 酸っぱい is sour, 炭酸 is the fizz in soda, and 酸素, oxygen, is literally "acid element", named when chemists thought every acid contained it.

Used in 酸素 (sanso, oxygen), 酸っぱい (suppai, sour), and 炭酸 (tansan, carbonation)

More from Atoms & Acids

• 粘 sticky
• 鉛 lead (metal)
• 凝 congeal
• 窒 block
• 硫 sulfur
• 硝 saltpeter
• 核 nucleus
• 素 element
• 析 analyze

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Readings from KANJIDIC2, © EDRDG, CC BY-SA.