音読み: キ
訓読み: くしき・あやしい
画数: 8
部首: だい（大）
Meaning
Strange / Unusual / Odd / Rare / Wonderful.
- 奇妙 — strange; curious; peculiar
- 奇数 — odd number
- 奇抜 — novel; eccentric; striking
- 好奇心 — curiosity
- 奇跡 — miracle; wonder
- 珍奇 — rare and curious; unusual
- 奇しくも — strangely; by a strange twist
Built on the radical 大 (“big; great”) with a sound element, 奇 carries the sense of something “odd, unusual, out of the ordinary.” Think: a big departure from the usual → “strange / rare.” It often appears in everyday words like 奇妙 (strange) and 奇数 (odd numbers).
Pair 奇 with 珍 (rare/precious). If something is 珍しい (rare), it often feels a bit 奇妙 (strange), too. Linking these meanings helps the “unusual / curious” sense of 奇 stick.
Novel
奇抜 — novel; unconventional; eye-catching