茂 means “grow thick, luxuriant”

しげる · shigeru

Also: overgrown, be luxuriant

Kun'yomi (Japanese reading)

しげる

On'yomi (Chinese reading)

モ

JLPT N1 · Taught in secondary school · 8 strokes

The story

Grass (艹) over 戊, a halberd: picture weeds so thick you would need a blade to cut through. 茂る is to grow thick and lush, as summer grass does around an empty house, and 茂 is a common name, Shigeru.

Used in 茂る (shigeru, to grow thick), 生い茂る (oishigeru, to grow rank), and 繁茂 (hanmo, luxuriant growth)

More from Grow & Wane

• 繁 thriving
• 尽 run out
• 膨 swell
• 殖 multiply
• 騰 soar
• 衰 decline
• 累 accumulate
• 堆 pile
• 旺 flourishing
• 耗 wear down
• 勃 sudden rise
• 展 unfold

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

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