音読み: ム
訓読み: ほこ
画数: 5
部首: Self（ほこ）
Meaning
Halberd / Spear / Weapon.
- 矛 — spear; halberd
- 矛先 — spear point; the brunt/target of attack
- 矛盾 — contradiction; inconsistency
- 矛盾する — to contradict; to be inconsistent
矛 is a pictograph of a hand-held pole weapon — think of a thrusting spear or halberd. It also functions as a self-form radical in our set (it appears as-is when used as a radical), but it’s relatively rare compared with high-frequency radicals.
Remember the word 矛盾 — literally “spear” (矛) and “shield” (盾). A famous tale tells of a merchant bragging, “My spear pierces any shield,” and “My shield blocks any spear.” Those claims can’t both be true — that’s a contradiction. Pairing 矛 with 盾 locks the meaning in place.
矛先 — spear point; the direction/target of an attack or criticism