Kanji Study

Bushu (Radical) Info:
刀 (かたな) – sword
刈 (ガイ, カイ, か.る, かっ かり) – reap; cut; clip; trim; prune

Henshall Mnemonic: seven sword cuts

Levels: JLPT N4 | JLPT 3 (old) | Grade 2
Frequency: #324 of the 2500 most used kanji in newspapers

Common Words and/or Phrases Using this Kanji:

Click any individual kanji to view a similar information sheet for it.
Click [K] to look up the word's individual character(s) at WWWJDIC.
Click [D] to look up the word at WWWJDIC (definition is the same but other useful features exist).
Click [Jisho] to look up the word at Jisho.org.

JLPT N5 Words

• 大切   [たいせつ]
  (adj-na,n) important; valuable; worthy of care   [K] [D] [Jisho]
• 切る   [きる]
  (suf,v5r) to cut; to chop; to hash; to carve; to saw; to clip; to shear; to slice; to strip; to fell; to cut down; to punch; to sever (connections); to pause; to break off; to disconnect; to turn off; to hang up; to cross (a street); to discount; to sell below cost; to shake (water) off; to finish; to be through; to complete   [K] [D] [Jisho]
• 切手   [きって]
  (n) stamp (postage); merchandise certificate   [K] [D] [Jisho]
• 切符   [きっぷ]
  (n) ticket   [K] [D] [Jisho]

JLPT N4 Words

• 親切   [しんせつ]
  (adj-na,n) kindness; gentleness   [K] [D] [Jisho]

JLPT N3 Words

• 横切る   [よこぎる]
  (v5r) to cross (e.g. arms); to traverse   [K] [D] [Jisho]
• 適切   [てきせつ]
  (adj-na,n) pertinent; appropriate; adequate; relevance   [K] [D] [Jisho]
• 切れ   [きれ]
  (n) cloth; piece; cut; chop; strip; slice; scrap; counter for such   [K] [D] [Jisho]
• 切れる   [きれる]
  (v1) (1) to cut well; to be sharp; (2) to break (off); to snap; to wear out; (3) to be injured; (4) to burst; to collapse; (5) to be disconnected; to be out of; to expire; to sever (connections) with; (6) to be shrewd; to have a sharp mind   [K] [D] [Jisho]
• 裏切る   [うらぎる]
  (v5r) to betray; to turn traitor to; to double-cross   [K] [D] [Jisho]

JLPT N2 Words

• 売り切れ   [うりきれ]
  (n) sold-out   [K] [D] [Jisho]
• 売り切れる   [うりきれる]
  (v1) to be sold out   [K] [D] [Jisho]
• 締め切る   [しめきる]
  (v5r) to shut up   [K] [D] [Jisho]
• 張り切る   [はりきる]
  (v5r) to be in high spirits; to be full of vigor; to be enthusiastic; to be eager; to stretch to breaking point   [K] [D] [Jisho]
• 締切   [しめきり]
  (n) closing; cut-off; end; deadline; Closed; No Entrance   [K] [D] [Jisho]
• 踏切   [ふみきり]
  (n) railway crossing; level crossing; starting line; scratch; crossover   [K] [D] [Jisho]
• 思い切り   [おもいきり]
  (adv,n) with all one's strength (heart); resignation; resolution   [K] [D] [Jisho]
• 千切る   [ちぎる]
  (v5r) to cut up fine; to pick (fruit)   [K] [D] [Jisho]
• 区切る   [くぎる]
  (v5r,vt) to punctuate; to cut off; to mark off; to stop; to put an end to   [K] [D] [Jisho]

JLPT N1 Words

• 小切手   [こぎって]
  (n) cheque; check   [K] [D] [Jisho]
• 打ち切る   [うちきる]
  (v5r) to stop; to abort; to discontinue; to close   [K] [D] [Jisho]
• 一切   [いっさい]
  (n-adv,n) all; everything; without exception; the whole; entirely; absolutely   [K] [D] [Jisho]
• 締め切り   [しめきり]
  (n) closing; cut-off; end; deadline; Closed; No Entrance   [K] [D] [Jisho]
• 切れ目   [きれめ]
  (n) break; pause; gap; end; rift; interruption; cut; section; notch; incision; end (of a task)   [K] [D] [Jisho]
• 切実   [せつじつ]
  (adj-na,n) compelling; serious; severe; acute; earnest; pressing; urgent   [K] [D] [Jisho]

Other Popular Words Not Classified by JLPT

• 幕切れ   [まくぎれ]
  (n) fall of the curtain; last scene; end of act   [K] [D] [Jisho]
• 皮切り   [かわきり]
  (n) beginning; start   [K] [D] [Jisho]
• 輪切り   [わぎり]
  (n) round slices   [K] [D] [Jisho]
• 切り口   [きりくち]
  (n) cut end; section; opening; slit   [K] [D] [Jisho]
• 言い切る   [いいきる]
  (v5r) to declare; to assert; to state definitively   [K] [D] [Jisho]
• 切り札   [きりふだ]
  (n) trump card   [K] [D] [Jisho]
• 指切り   [ゆびきり]
  (n) linking little fingers to confirm a promise   [K] [D] [Jisho]
• 切り捨て   [きりすて]
  (n) (historical) using people of low rank as sword fodder; omission; rounding down   [K] [D] [Jisho]
• 切り捨てる   [きりすてる]
  (v1) to truncate; to cut down; to omit; to discard; to slay; to cast away   [K] [D] [Jisho]
• 爪切り   [つめきり]
  (n) nail clippers   [K] [D] [Jisho]
• 切り上げ   [きりあげ]
  (n) end; conclusion   [K] [D] [Jisho]
• 切り替え   [きりかえ]
  (n) exchange; conversion; replacement; switching (to); switchover   [K] [D] [Jisho]
• 打ち切り   [うちきり]
  (n) end; close; finish; discontinuance   [K] [D] [Jisho]
• やり切れない   [やりきれない]
  (adj) unbearable; too much   [K] [D] [Jisho]
• 澄み切る   [すみきる]
  (v5r) to be serene   [K] [D] [Jisho]
• 切り抜き   [きりぬき]
  (n) scraps; cuts   [K] [D] [Jisho]
• 飛び切り   [とびきり]
  (adj-no,adv) extraordinary; superior; choice   [K] [D] [Jisho]
• 紋切り型   [もんきりがた]
  (adj-na,adj-no,n) fixed formula; stereotyped phrase; hackneyed   [K] [D] [Jisho]
• 切り崩す   [きりくずす]
  (v5s) (1) to level (earth); to cut through (a mountain); (2) to split (the opposition); to break (strike)   [K] [D] [Jisho]
• 品切れ   [しなぎれ]
  (n) out of stock   [K] [D] [Jisho]
• 切り離す   [きりはなす]
  (v5s) to detach; to decapitate   [K] [D] [Jisho]
• 踏み切る   [ふみきる]
  (v5r) to make a bold start; to take a plunge; to take off   [K] [D] [Jisho]
• 締切り   [しめきり]
  (n) closing; cut-off; end; deadline; Closed; No Entrance   [K] [D] [Jisho]
• 仕切り   [しきり]
  (n) partition; division; boundary; compartment; settlement of accounts; toeing the mark   [K] [D] [Jisho]
• 裏切り   [うらぎり]
  (n) treachery; betrayal; perfidy   [K] [D] [Jisho]

Find more details for 切 at jisho.org, Yookoso! or WWWJDIC

Acknowledgments

The sofware used to generate this kanji information uses the EDICT and KANJIDIC files. These files are the property of the Electronic Dictionary Research and Development Group at Monash University and are used in conformance with the Group's license.

NOTE: I converted the sources just mentioned years ago and have never really updated so there may be some missing or incorrect information that has been addressed in the original sources but not here.

The first Stroke Order image used on this page is courtesy of Ulrich Apel's excellent open source KanjiVG project. The second image is from the folks at the excellent Jisho Japanese-English dictionary site and it too is based on KanjiVG.

Classifying the kanji and popular vocabulary by the new JLPT levels was done by consulting Jonathan Waller‘s JLPT Resources page, renshuu, Wictionary, and Nihongo Ichiban.

The Henshall Mnemonics are the copyright of Tuttle Publishing and are the result of the hard work by Professor Henshall. See the list I used here.

If you are curious about the lexicography shown in the word definitions, visit the WWWJDIC abbreviations and codes guide and the JMdict/Edict Lexicographical details page.