抑 means “suppress, restrain”

おさえる · osaeru

Also: repress, well, now, in the first place

Kun'yomi (Japanese reading): おさえる
On'yomi (Chinese reading): ヨク

JLPT N1 · Taught in secondary school · 7 strokes

The story

A hand (扌) pressing down on a kneeling figure (卩): holding it in check. 抑える is to keep something down, from costs to anger, 抑制 is curbing, and 抑揚, rising and falling, is the intonation of a voice.

Used in 抑える (osaeru, to hold down/restrain), 抑制 (yokusei, restraint/curbing), and 抑圧 (yokuatsu, oppression)

抑 means “suppress, restrain”

The story

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