腰 means “lower back, hips, waist”

こし · koshi

Also: loins, low wainscoting

Kun'yomi (Japanese reading)

こし

On'yomi (Chinese reading)

ヨウ

JLPT N2 · Taught in secondary school · 13 strokes

The story

Flesh (月) and 要, the essential, which itself first meant the waist: the pivot every movement turns on. 腰痛 is lower back pain, and 本腰を入れる, putting your real hips into it, is finally getting serious.

Used in 腰痛 (youtsuu, lower back pain), 腰掛ける (koshikakeru, to sit down), and 本腰 (hongoshi, serious effort)

More from The Human Body

• 涙 tears
• 汗 sweat
• 肌 skin
• 胃 stomach
• 膚 skin
• 脳 brain
• 臓 internal organ
• 皮 skin
• 胸 chest
• 腕 arm
• 毛 hair
• 肩 shoulder

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