彫 means “carve, sculpt”

ほり · hori

Also: engrave, chisel

Kun'yomi (Japanese reading)

ほる

On'yomi (Chinese reading)

チョウ

Taught in secondary school · 11 strokes

The story

A decorative pattern (彡) emerging from careful cutting (周): 彫 is the art of revealing beauty hidden within material. Japanese wood carving (彫刻) adorns every temple gate, while the tradition of 彫金 (chōkin, metal engraving) produces exquisite sword guards.

Used in 彫刻 (choukoku, sculpture), 彫金 (choukin, metal engraving), and 木彫り (kibori, woodcarving)

More from Music & Arts

• 詩 poetry
• 拍 rhythm
• 弦 string (instrument)
• 笛 flute
• 鼓 drum
• 音 sound
• 曲 melody
• 唱 chant
• 演 perform
• 芸 art
• 美 beauty
• 歌 song

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

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