哀 means “sorrow, pity”
あい · ai
Also: pathetic, grief, pathos
- Kun'yomi (Japanese reading)
- あわれ, あわれむ, かなしい
- On'yomi (Chinese reading)
- アイ
JLPT N1 · Taught in secondary school · 9 strokes
The story
A mouth (口) tucked inside a robe (衣): picture someone sobbing into a sleeve. 哀 is sorrow and pity: 喜怒哀楽 names joy, anger, sorrow and pleasure, 哀愁 is melancholy, and 哀れ is pitiful, the ache in もののあわれ, the sadness of passing things.
Used in 喜怒哀楽 (kidoairaku, joy, anger, sorrow and pleasure), 哀愁 (aishuu, melancholy), and 哀れ (aware, pitiful/pathos)
More from Joy & Sorrow
- 悦 joy
- 慨 deep emotion
- 愉 pleasure
- 煩 bother
- 慕 adore
- 愁 melancholy
- 憧 long for
- 爽 refreshing
- 憬 yearning
- 鬱 gloom
- 歓 delight
- 慰 console
Learn 哀 and more kanji free on Fuji Learning · All kanji
Readings from KANJIDIC2, © EDRDG, CC BY-SA.