尋 means “ask, inquire”
たずねる · tazuneru
Also: fathom, look for
- Kun'yomi (Japanese reading)
- たずねる, ひろ
- On'yomi (Chinese reading)
- ジン
JLPT N1 · Taught in secondary school · 12 strokes
The story
A hand (ヨ) on top, another (寸) below, with 工 and 口 between: picture arms spread wide while the mouth asks. 尋 was once a length, two outstretched arms. 尋ねる is to ask, as in asking the way, and 尋問 is questioning.
Used in 尋ねる (tazuneru, to ask), 尋問 (jinmon, interrogation), and 尋常 (jinjou, ordinary)
More from Speak & Explain
- 啓 open
- 諭 admonish
- 挨 push close
- 拶 press close
- 詮 scrutinize
- 謝 apologize
- 訳 translation
- 釈 explain
- 喚 call out
- 陳 display
Learn 尋 and more kanji free on Fuji Learning · All kanji
Readings from KANJIDIC2, © EDRDG, CC BY-SA.