材 means “material, timber”

ざい · zai

Also: lumber, log, wood

On'yomi (Chinese reading)

ザイ

JLPT N2 · Taught in grade 4 · 7 strokes

The story

A tree (木) beside talent (才): wood with the makings of something. 材料 is materials or ingredients, 木材 is lumber, and 人材, people of talent, is what every Japanese company says it is looking for.

Used in 材料 (zairyou, materials/ingredients), 木材 (mokuzai, lumber), and 人材 (jinzai, talented people)

More from Wood, Cloth & Tools

• 装 attire
• 輪 ring
• 帯 sash
• 板 board
• 衣 clothing
• 械 machine
• 棒 stick
• 灯 lamp
• 筒 tube
• 帽 hat
• 舟 boat
• 貝 shellfish

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

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