Explore 凍 in everyday situations, from icy roads to food storage.

The idea

凍 has 10 strokes. Follow the linked diagram. Learn 凍る（こおる）, 凍える（こごえる）, 冷凍（れいとう） and 解凍（かいとう） as whole words; compounds often use とう.

Patterns to compare
Japanese wordReadingExample in context
凍るこおるThe water in the pond froze.
冷凍れいとうI froze the meat.
解凍かいとうI will thaw the frozen fish.
凍えるこごえるMy hands feel as if they might freeze from the cold.

Examples

  • 池いけの水みずが凍こおりました。The water in the pond froze.
  • 肉にくを冷凍れいとうしました。I froze the meat.
  • 冷凍れいとうした魚さかなを解凍かいとうします。I will thaw the frozen fish.
  • 朝あさ、道路どうろが凍結とうけつしていました。The road was icy in the morning.
  • 寒さむさで手てが凍こごえそうです。My hands feel as if they might freeze from the cold.
  • 冷凍庫れいとうこに野菜やさいを入いれました。I put vegetables in the freezer.

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

Watch out

凍る describes something freezing; 凍える describes a person or body part suffering from cold. 解凍 means thawing, the reverse of 冷凍.

Try it yourself

  1. Write the reading of 凍る in hiragana.

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    こおる

    凍る is こおる: water can freeze naturally. Keep the long お sound.

  2. Write the reading of 冷凍 in hiragana.

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    れいとう

    冷凍 is れいとう: it means freezing or frozen storage. The compound uses とう.

  3. Choose the missing kanji: 解＿（かいとう）［凍／東］.

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    凍

    解凍 uses 凍 and is read かいとう; it means thawing frozen food.

Use it today

Write 凍 with the stroke diagram, then cover the table and read 冷凍 and 解凍 aloud. Make a sentence about food.