Kanji 消

音読おんよみ: ショウ

訓読くんよみ:える・け

画数かくすう: 10

部首ぶしゅ: さんずい(氵)

Meaning

Extinguish / Disappear / Put out / Erase

Conjugation
Tap for 消える (disappear) Tap for 消す (erase)
  • す — to extinguish, to erase
  • える — to go out, to disappear
  • 消火しょうか — fire extinguishing
  • 消防しょうぼう — fire fighting
  • 消化しょうか — digestion
More examples - tap to expand
  • 消極しょうきょく的 — passive, negative
  • 消費しょうひ — consumption, spending
  • 消耗しょうもう — exhaustion, wear
  • 消散しょうさん — dispersion, dissipation
  • 消失しょうしつ — disappearance, vanishing
Compound Verbs - tap to expand
  • る — to erase completely; to wipe out
  • す — to cancel
  • る — to disappear completely
  • せる — to vanish; to fade away
  • のこる — to remain unextinguished

The radical 氵(sanzui) means water. Combined with 肖 (resembling), the character suggests something vanishing or fading away — like water putting out fire. It’s used for concepts involving disappearance, erasure, or extinguishing.

◀︎ Sayings+ ▶︎