Japanese kanji 背: back, height and background

Explore 背 in everyday words for the body and in expressions for a scene or story. Learn each reading with its whole word.

The idea

背 has 9 strokes; follow the linked stroke-order diagram. 背中 is せなか, 背 is せ in 背が高い, 背景 is はいけい and 背負う is せおう.

Patterns to compare
Japanese word	Reading	Example in context
背中	せなか	My back hurts.
背が高い	せがたかい	My older brother is tall.
背景	はいけい	Mountains are visible in the background of the photograph.
背負う	せおう	I walk carrying a child on my back.

背中せなかが痛いたいです。My back hurts.
兄あには背せが高たかいです。My older brother is tall.
写真しゃしんの背景はいけいに山やまが見みえます。Mountains are visible in the background of the photograph.
子こどもを背負せおって歩あるきます。I walk carrying a child on my back.
壁かべに背中せなかをつけます。I lean my back against the wall.
この物語ものがたりの背景はいけいを調しらべます。I research the background of this story.

Read-aloud uses a synthetic Japanese voice available on your device. Voice quality and availability vary; it does not assess your pronunciation.

背中 means the back of the body, while 背が高い describes a person’s height. 背景 can mean a visual background or the circumstances behind a story.

Write the reading of 背中 in hiragana.
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せなか
背中 is せなか: it means the back, as in “My back hurts.”
Write the reading of 背景 in hiragana.
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はいけい
背景 is はいけい: it can describe the mountains behind the subject of a photograph.
Choose the missing kanji: ＿負う（せおう）［背／北］.
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背
背 makes 背負う（せおう）, to carry on one’s back; 北 alone means north.

Write 背 following the diagram, cover the table, and read 背中 and 背景. Then make a sentence about someone’s height.