Mnemonic
Imagine dragging a jagged stone across tightly stretched skin. The rough edge catches, digs in, and begins to rend the surface apart with a horrible tearing sound. Once stone meets skin, nothing remains whole—only ragged strips left in its wake.
Additional thoughts
Picture a primitive scene: a sharp flint stone used to rend animal skin during butchering. The gritty roughness of stone against the resistance of skin perfectly captures that forceful tearing apart.Quick recall
A jagged stone drags across skin and rends it to shreds.Details
The keyword for 破 is rend. This kanji conveys the idea of tearing apart, breaking, or destroying something forcefully. It encompasses both physical acts of breaking or smashing, as well as more abstract meanings such as defeating an opponent, violating a rule, or shattering a record. The sense is one of forceful disruption, where something whole is split or torn asunder.
- On'yomi
- は
- Kun'yomi
- やぶ.る、やぶ.れる、わ.れる