Kanjis

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. Symbols used in Japanese writing that represent ideas or words rather than sounds alone; complex characters derived from Chinese script; components often used alongside phonetic scripts in written language
2. Characters forming the logographic system of Japanese that convey meanings and sometimes pronunciations; originating from Chinese characters; essential parts of writing combining with syllabaries
3. Written symbols in Japanese that express meanings through intricate designs; adopted from Chinese ideograms; frequently combined with kana scripts to compose text

Etymology: Japanese "漢字" literally means "Han characters," naming the script after the Han dynasty, whose era of Chinese writing supplied these characters. The Japanese reading "kanji" joins 漢, the Middle Chinese term for the Han dynasty and China, with 字, meaning a written character. The same two characters are read "hanzi" in Mandarin and "hanja" in Korean. These are doublets, all descended from one Chinese phrase and adapted to different pronunciations. A separate drink is spelled the same way in English. It is a fermented, sour gruel borrowed from Hindi "kāñjī," and it has no connection to the writing system. "Kanjis" is simply the English plural, formed by adding -s. Japanese does not pluralize nouns this way, so the form exists only in English.

Synonyms: Chinese characters, logograms