極 means “extreme, pole”

きょく · kyoku

Also: extremely, very

Kun'yomi (Japanese reading)

きわめる, きわまる, きわまり, きわみ, きめる

On'yomi (Chinese reading)

キョク, ゴク

JLPT N2 · Taught in grade 4 · 12 strokes

The story

Wood (木) beside 亟, a person stretched between ground and sky: 極 first meant the ridgepole, the highest beam of a house. Now it is any far limit: 北極 is the North Pole, 南極 the South, and 極める is to master something.

Used in 積極的 (sekkyokuteki, proactive), 北極 (hokkyoku, North Pole), and 極めて (kiwamete, extremely)

More from Quake & Fire

• 混 mix
• 震 quake
• 傾 lean
• 燃 burn
• 跡 trace
• 灰 ash

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

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