離 means “separate, leave”

はなれる · hanareru

Also: detach, separation, disjoin, digress

Kun'yomi (Japanese reading)

はなれる, はなす

On'yomi (Chinese reading)

リ

JLPT N1 · Taught in secondary school · 19 strokes

The story

A bird (隹) beside 离, which looks like a net: picture a bird slipping free and flying off. 離れる is to move away, 距離 is distance, 離陸 a plane leaving the runway, and 離婚 a marriage coming apart.

Used in 離れる (hanareru, to separate/leave), 距離 (kyori, distance), and 離婚 (rikon, divorce)

More from Apart & Together

• 従 follow
• 伴 accompany
• 属 belong
• 併 combine
• 兼 double as
• 孤 solitary
• 唯 only
• 遇 meet
• 隔 separate
• 随 follow along
• 添 add
• 疎 sparse

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