償 means “compensate, atone”

しょう · shou

Also: reparation, make up for, recompense, redeem

Kun'yomi (Japanese reading)

つぐなう

On'yomi (Chinese reading)

ショウ

JLPT N1 · Taught in secondary school · 17 strokes

The story

A person (亻) paying back with a prize (賞): making amends with something of value. 弁償 is paying for what you broke, 無償, with nothing asked in return, is free of charge, and 償う is atoning, as in 罪を償う, paying for a crime.

Used in 弁償 (benshou, paying for damage), 無償 (mushou, free of charge), and 償う (tsugunau, to atone/make up for)

More from Pay & Taxes

• 貢 tribute
• 賃 fee
• 賠 compensation
• 稼 earn
• 酬 reward
• 俸 salary
• 租 tax
• 賦 levy
• 捗 progress
• 就 take up

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

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