主 · master, main

JLPT N4 kanji. Readings, meaning, and how the character is built.

主 means master, main. It is a JLPT N4 kanji written in 5 strokes, read ぬし or しゅ. It is built from 2 parts: 亠 (kettle lid radical (no. 8)), 王 (king, rule). It appears in ご主人 ((your / her) husband) and 主張 (claim / assertion / insistence).

筆順 · Stroke order

主 is written in 5 strokes, in the order numbered below. Order matters: it is what makes handwriting legible, and it is how the character is looked up in a paper dictionary.

解字 · What it is made of

主 breaks into 2 parts.

• 亠 semantic kettle lid radical (no. 8) · top carries the meaning
• 王 other king, rule · bottom component

Words that use 主

Word	Reading	Meaning
ご主人	ごしゅじん	(your / her) husband
主張	しゅちょう	claim / assertion / insistence
主語	しゅご	(gram) subject

Built from the same parts

These use 亠 or 王 too. The part keeps its job from one character to the next, which is what makes it worth learning once.

• 六six
• 夜night
• 京capital
• 文sentence
• 理reason

Practise 主

Sumi teaches the character before it tests you: stroke order animated, the breakdown above shown as a pull-apart X-ray, then spaced review. Free, in your browser, no signup.

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