軸 means “axis, axle, shaft”

じく · jiku

Also: pivot, stem, stalk

On'yomi (Chinese reading)

ジク

JLPT N1 · Taught in secondary school · 12 strokes

The story

A cart (車) beside 由, the reason or origin: the axle everything turns on. 軸 is an axis: 地軸 is the earth's axis, 主軸 a team's mainstay, and a 掛け軸 is the hanging scroll in a tatami room's alcove, rolled on its rod.

Used in 軸 (jiku, axis/axle), 掛け軸 (kakejiku, hanging scroll), and 地軸 (chijiku, Earth's axis)

More from Roots & Foundations

• 概 outline
• 枢 pivot
• 芯 core
• 基 foundation
• 幹 trunk
• 源 source
• 拠 basis
• 盤 board
• 礎 cornerstone

Learn 軸 and more kanji free on Fuji Learning · All kanji

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