大
| Property |
Value |
| Meaning |
big, large |
| Strokes |
3 |
| JLPT Level |
N5 |
| On-reading (音読み) |
ダイ、タイ |
| Kun-reading (訓読み) |
おお、おお-きい |
| Radical |
大 (だい) - Big (U+5927) |
Stroke Order
The kanji 大 is written in 3 strokes following standard top-to-bottom and left-to-right rules:
- Stroke 1: A horizontal line drawn from left to right.
- Stroke 2: A vertical stroke starting from the center of the first stroke, curving slightly to the left.
- Stroke 3: A diagonal stroke starting from the center, sweeping out to the right.
Radical Analysis
The kanji 大 is a pictograph. It depicts a human figure standing with arms outstretched, signifying "big" or "large" in the sense of a person taking up space. It is its own radical (部首: だい). When combined with other kanji, it often serves as a base to indicate size, importance, or intensity.
Mnemonic
Imagine a person standing on the ground, stretching their arms out as wide as they can to show how big the fish they caught was. The horizontal line is their arms, and the two legs are their feet planted firmly on the ground.
On-readings (音読み) with Examples
ダイ (Dai)
| Word |
Reading |
Romaji |
English |
| 大学 |
だいがく |
daigaku |
university |
| 大使 |
たいし |
taishi |
ambassador |
| 大事 |
だいじ |
daiji |
important |
| 大変 |
たいへん |
taihen |
terrible/very |
タイ (Tai)
| Word |
Reading |
Romaji |
English |
| 大陸 |
たいりく |
tairiku |
continent |
| 大抵 |
たいてい |
taitei |
usually/mostly |
| 大半 |
たいはん |
taihan |
majority |
Kun-readings (訓読み) with Examples
おお (Oo)
| Word |
Reading |
Romaji |
English |
| 大雨 |
おおあめ |
ooame |
heavy rain |
| 大通り |
おおどおり |
oodoori |
main street |
おお-きい (Oo-kii)
| Word |
Reading |
Romaji |
English |
| 大きい |
おおきい |
ookii |
big |
| 大きな |
おおきな |
ookina |
large (adjective) |
JLPT N5 Words Using 大
| Word |
Reading |
Romaji |
English |
JLPT |
| 大学生 |
だいがくせい |
daigakusei |
university student |
N5 |
| 大好き |
だいすき |
daisuki |
love/like very much |
N5 |
| 大丈夫 |
だいじょうぶ |
daijoubu |
okay/all right |
N5 |
| 大人 |
おとな |
otona |
adult |
N5 |
| 大切 |
たいせつ |
taisetsu |
important |
N5 |
| 大変 |
たいへん |
taihen |
very/difficult |
N5 |
| 大勢 |
おおぜい |
oozei |
great number of people |
N5 |
| 大切な |
たいせつな |
taisetsuna |
precious/valuable |
N5 |
Example Sentences
| Japanese |
Reading |
Romaji |
English |
| 彼は大きい家に住んでいます。 |
かれはおおきいいえにすんでいます。 |
Kare wa ookii ie ni sunde imasu. |
He lives in a big house. |
| 大学で日本語を勉強します。 |
だいがくでにほんごをべんきょうします。 |
Daigaku de nihongo o benkyou shimasu. |
I study Japanese at university. |
| それはとても大事なことです。 |
それはとてもだいじなことです。 |
Sore wa totemo daiji na koto desu. |
That is a very important matter. |
| 今日は大雨が降っています。 |
きょうはおおあめがふっています。 |
Kyou wa ooame ga futte imasu. |
It is raining heavily today. |
| 私は寿司が大好きです。 |
わたしはすしがだいすきです。 |
Watashi wa sushi ga daisuki desu. |
I love sushi. |
| 大丈夫、心配しないで。 |
だいじょうぶ、しんぱいしないで。 |
Daijoubu, shinpai shinaide. |
It's okay, don't worry. |
Common Confusion Pairs
| Kanji |
Reading |
Meaning |
How to distinguish |
| 大 |
だい |
Big |
Has a horizontal top bar. |
| 太 |
ふと(い) |
Fat/Thick |
Has an extra dot at the bottom right. |
| 天 |
てん |
Heaven/Sky |
The top stroke is shorter; looks like a person with a "roof" over their head. |
Usage Frequency Note
大 is one of the most frequently used kanji in the Japanese language. It appears in almost every newspaper, textbook, and daily conversation. Because it is a fundamental building block for concepts related to size and importance, mastering its readings and usage is essential for all learners.