肩 means “shoulder”

かた · kata

Kun'yomi (Japanese reading)

かた

On'yomi (Chinese reading)

ケン

JLPT N2 · Taught in secondary school · 8 strokes

The story

A door (戸) over flesh (月): picture the shoulder as the hinge your arm swings from. 肩こり, stiff shoulders, is a constant office complaint in Japan, and 肩書き, written at the "shoulder" of your name, is your job title.

Used in 肩こり (katakori, stiff shoulders), 肩書き (katagaki, job title), and 肩車 (kataguruma, shoulder ride)

More from The Human Body

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

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