壁 means “wall”

かべ · kabe

Also: lining (stomach), fence

Kun'yomi (Japanese reading)

かべ

On'yomi (Chinese reading)

ヘキ

Taught in secondary school · 16 strokes

The story

Earth (土) combined with a jeweled authority symbol (辟): walls were once built by decree, defining territory and safety. Traditional Japanese 土壁 (tsuchikabe, earthen walls) are mixed with straw and lime, breathing with the seasons.

Used in 壁紙 (kabegami, wallpaper), 障壁 (shouheki, barrier), and 絶壁 (zeppeki, cliff)

Example sentences

• 壁に絵を掛けました。 I hung a painting on the wall.
• 壁の色は白です。 The color of the wall is white.

Kanji that look like 壁

• 璧 (jade disc): 壁 has 土 (earth) at the bottom: a wall; 璧 has 玉 (jade): a precious disc

More from Family & Home

• 畳 tatami mat
• 室 room
• 柱 pillar
• 家 house
• 親 parent
• 弟 younger brother
• 妹 younger sister
• 夫 husband
• 妻 wife
• 孫 grandchild
• 婚 marriage
• 育 raise

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