Meet 防 in words about keeping harm away, from rain to disasters. Learn each reading with the complete word.

The idea

防 has 7 strokes; follow the linked stroke-order diagram. 防ぐ（ふせぐ） is a verb meaning to prevent or ward off; 防災（ぼうさい） and 消防士（しょうぼうし） use the reading ぼう.

Patterns to compare
Japanese wordReadingMeaning
防ぐふせぐprevent; ward off
防災ぼうさいdisaster prevention
消防士しょうぼうしfirefighter

Examples

  • この傘かさは雨あめを防ふせぎます。This umbrella keeps the rain off.
  • 感染かんせんを防ふせぐために、手てを洗あらいます。We wash our hands to prevent infections.
  • 町まちは毎年まいとし、防災ぼうさい訓練くんれんを行おこないます。The town holds a disaster preparedness drill every year.
  • 消火器しょうかきの場所ばしょを確認かくにんしました。I checked where the fire extinguisher was.
  • この柵さくは人ひとが落おちるのを防ふせぎます。This fence prevents people from falling.
  • 消防士しょうぼうしが現場げんばへ駆かけつけました。The firefighters rushed to the scene.

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

Watch out

防ぐ takes what is prevented or kept out with を; 防災 names disaster prevention, not a disaster itself. 方 resembles the right side of 防 but lacks the left component.

Try it yourself

  1. Write the reading of 防ぐ in hiragana.

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    ふせぐ

    防ぐ is ふせぐ: 雨を防ぐ means to keep rain off. The final ぐ is part of the verb.

  2. Write the reading of 防災 in hiragana.

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    ぼうさい

    防災 is ぼうさい, disaster prevention. Both characters form one compound.

  3. Choose the missing kanji: 消＿士（しょうぼうし）［防／方］.

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    防

    防 completes 消防士（しょうぼうし）, a firefighter. 方 alone does not form this word.

Use it today

Write 防 following the diagram. Cover the table, read 防ぐ and 防災 aloud, then make a sentence about preventing harm.