割

音読おんよみ: カツ

訓読くんよみ: わる・わり・さく

画数かくすう: 12 strokes

部首ぶしゅ: 刂(りっとう / sword radical)

Meaning

To divide, split, break, or cut apart. Also used to describe percentages or ratios.


  • 割合わりあい — Ratio, proportion
  • 割引わりびき — Discount
  • る — To divide, to split
  • 分割ぶんかつ — Division, partition
  • 割当わりあて — Allocation
  • ざん — Division (math)
  • ばし — Disposable chopsticks

This kanji combines the sword radical 刂 (symbolizing cutting) with 害 (as the phonetic component), forming a phono-semantic compound. It visually and conceptually suggests something being sliced or split.

Its use in math (as in 割合 or 割り算) reflects its original “dividing” meaning extended into logical and numerical contexts.

割引わりびき使つかえます。
You can use a discount.

割合わりあいおとこひとおおいです。
There is a high ratio of men.

This kanji is pronounced カツ in on-yomi (used in compounds like 割愛 and 割当) and わる・わり・さく in kun-yomi. わり is especially common in ratio-related terms, and わる is the verb form meaning “to divide” or “to break.”

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