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北

north
Stroke count: 5

Readings

On readingホク
Kun readingきた
JLPT level: N5JōyōGrade 2

Meanings

  1. northRtK
  1. the North
  2. northern territories
  3. north Korea
  4. north wind

Synonyms

北朝鮮

Radicals and components

Radical匕spoon
How it's built
北
  • →

Mnemonic (RtK)

ⓘ

spoon (匕) · sitting on the ground

From "Remembering the Kanji" by James Heisig · Frame 480

Compound words

北斎ほくさい
Hokusai, short form of the name of Katsushika Hokusai (1760–1849), the ukiyo-e artist famous for The Great Wave.
葛飾北斎かつしかほくさい
Katsushika Hokusai (1760–1849), ukiyo-e artist famous for Thirty-six Views of Mount Fuji and The Great Wave.
東北とうほく
north-east; Tōhoku (northernmost six prefectures of Honshu); Tohoku
南北なんぼく
north and south; north to south; South Korea and North Korea
敗北はいぼく
defeat; loss; reverse; setback
北緯ほくい
north latitude
北欧ほくおう
Northern Europe; Nordic countries; Scandinavia
北海ほっかい
northern sea; North Sea; Hokkaido
北京ペキン
Beijing (China); Peking
北極ほっきょく
North Pole; the Arctic
北口きたぐち
north entrance; north exit
北上ほくじょう
going north
北西ほくせい
northwest
北端ほくたん
northern extremity
北部ほくぶ
northern part; the north (of a region)
北米ほくべい
North America
北方ほっぽう
the north; northward; northern direction; northern part (e.g. of a country); northern district
北陸ほくりく
Hokuriku region (of Honshu; incl. Niigata, Toyama, Ishikawa and Fukui prefectures)
北国きたぐに
northern country; northern provinces; northern regions; northland
北側きたがわ
north side; north bank
北東ほくとう
northeast
北風きたかぜ
north wind; northerly wind
北北東ほくほくとう
north-northeast; north-north-east
北海道ほっかいどう
Hokkaido (island, prefectural-level administrative unit)

Kun Reading Examples

船はまっすぐ北に向かっている。きた
The ship is bearing due north.tatoeba

Additional Examples

彼は南北戦争の歴史書を書いた。
He wrote a book about the American Civil War.tatoeba
彼は昨年北海道にいましたか。
Was he in Hokkaido last year?tatoeba
彼は今年の夏、東北地方を旅行した。
He traveled through the Tohoku district this summer.tatoeba
彼は決して敗北を認めないだろう。
He will on no account accept defeat.tatoeba

Stroke Order

5 strokes

Practice Writing

Practice Writing 北

Draw with a guide, then from memory — checked at every step