冠 means “crown, cap, top”

かんむり · kanmuri

Also: best, peerless

Kun'yomi (Japanese reading)

かんむり

On'yomi (Chinese reading)

カン

JLPT N1 · Taught in secondary school · 9 strokes

The story

A hand (寸) setting a cover (冖) on a head (元): a crown or a cap. 王冠 is a crown, and a bottle cap too; 冠婚葬祭 covers life's ceremonies; and for a kanji learner, the top part of a character, like 艹 in 花, is its かんむり.

Used in 冠 (kanmuri, crown; top radical), 王冠 (oukan, crown/bottle cap), and 冠婚葬祭 (kankon sousai, life's ceremonies)

More from Crests & Honors

• 勲 meritorious deed
• 紋 crest
• 碑 monument
• 傑 outstanding
• 褒 praise
• 璽 imperial seal
• 標 mark
• 徴 sign
• 功 merit
• 称 name
• 誉 honor
• 威 dignity

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

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