Word
Kana: くし Romaji: kushi Level: N2

Meaning in English

comb

Stroke order

Animated kanji stroke order

Illustrated Dictionary
櫛 - Illustrated Dictionary
Sentence

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Dictionary

Word context

What it means

櫛 means a hand-held grooming tool with teeth used to detangle and arrange hair, a basic object in daily grooming and styling.

Main meanings

  • Hair grooming tool with evenly spaced teeth used to detangle or shape hair.
  • The teeth of the device are referred to as 櫛歯 in technical contexts.
  • Decorative or ceremonial versions of櫛 used as hair ornaments in traditional dress.

How to use it

櫛 is used in everyday conversation and writing to describe the act of combing or the instrument itself; typical phrases include 櫛で髪を梳く and 櫛を使う, reflecting both casual and formal contexts.

Composition

  • 木 indicates wood, signaling traditional material; the remaining elements create a pictorial sense of a device with teeth used for grooming.

Etymology

etymology The word is written with the single kanji 櫛; the kun-reading kushi represents the native term for the object, while historical phonetic elements contribute to its pronunciation; the reading has remained stable in modern Japanese.

Origin

Historically, 櫛 has been a common grooming tool in Japan since ancient times, with wooden, bone, or ivory variants used in daily life and in traditional attire.

Word class

noun (名詞)