破 means “tear, break”

やぶる · yaburu

Also: rend, rip

Kun'yomi (Japanese reading)

やぶる, やぶれる, われる

On'yomi (Chinese reading)

ハ

JLPT N3 · Taught in grade 5 · 10 strokes

The story

A stone (石) tearing through skin (皮): something ripped open. 破る is to tear, to break a promise or a record, or to beat an opponent, and 破れる is what a paper shoji screen does when a cat's claw goes through.

Used in 破る (yaburu, to tear/break), 破れる (yabureru, to be torn), and 破壊 (hakai, destruction)

More from Victory & Defeat

• 抜 pull out
• 努 effort
• 倒 fall
• 戦 fight
• 勝 win
• 打 hit
• 争 compete
• 位 rank
• 格 status
• 球 ball
• 負 lose
• 失 lose

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

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