拳 means “fist”

こぶし · kobushi

Kun'yomi (Japanese reading)

こぶし

On'yomi (Chinese reading)

ケン, ゲン

JLPT N1 · Taught in secondary school · 10 strokes

The story

A hand (手) under the top of 巻, roll up: fingers curled tight. 拳 is a fist, 拳銃 is a handgun, and 太極拳, tai chi, is the slow art seen in parks at dawn. Don't mix it up with 挙, raise, whose top is different.

Used in 拳 (kobushi, fist), 拳銃 (kenjuu, handgun), and 太極拳 (taikyokuken, tai chi)

More from Head to Toe

• 唇 lips
• 爪 nail
• 瞳 pupil (of the eye)
• 眉 eyebrow
• 股 crotch
• 肢 limb
• 膝 knee
• 喉 throat
• 肘 elbow
• 咽 throat
• 顎 jaw
• 頰 cheek

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

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