空 means “sky”

そら · sora

Also: empty, void, vacant

Kun'yomi (Japanese reading): そら, あく, あき, あける, から
On'yomi (Chinese reading): クウ

JLPT N4 · Taught in grade 1 · 8 strokes

The story

The vast Japanese sky witnesses all, from ancient samurai battles to modern bullet trains.

Also means "empty": a profound duality

Where it comes from

Phonetic-Semantic (形声文字): Hole/cave radical + craftsmanship component.

Imagine looking up through a hole (穴) in a cave ceiling and seeing the vast, empty sky. That's the origin of 空: the emptiness you see above. It means both "sky" and "empty."

To remember it: Looking up through a cave opening (穴) and seeing the crafted (工) beauty of the empty sky.

Its parts

穴 Hole/cave · Top
工 Work/craft · Bottom

A cave (穴) hollowed by work (工): empty, sky

Words with 空

星空 (ほしぞら, hoshizora): starry sky
青空 (あおぞら, aozora): blue sky
青空 (あおぞら, aozora): blue sky

Example sentences

今日の空は青いです。 Today's sky is blue.
空港まで一時間かかります。 It takes one hour to the airport.

Kanji that look like 空

穴 (hole): 空 has 工 under the roof radical, 穴 has 八: sky vs hole

More from Nature's Poetry

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