本 means “book, origin”

ほん · hon

Also: present, main

Kun'yomi (Japanese reading)

もと

On'yomi (Chinese reading)

ホン

JLPT N5 · Taught in grade 1 · 5 strokes

The story

A tree (木) with roots marked at the base: 本 means "root" or "origin," and by extension, the bound pages where knowledge takes root. Japan's publishing industry is the world's third largest, with manga alone a $5 billion market.

Used in 日本 (nihon, Japan) and 本当 (hontou, really/truth)

Words with 本

• 日本 (にほん, nihon): Japan
• 本心 (ほんしん, honshin): true feelings
• 本人 (ほんにん, honnin): the person in question
• 日本語 (にほんご, nihongo): Japanese language
• 日本刀 (にほんとう, nihontou): Japanese sword
• 本当 (ほんとう, hontou): really / truth

More from Tools & Objects

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• 刀 sword
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• 紙 paper

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

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