界 — how to write the kanji for “world”

界 (“world” and “boundary”) is a JLPT N4 kanji taught in third grade in Japan. In newspapers it is the 158th most used kanji. Its parts sit stacked: 田 (“rice field”, its radical), strokes 1–5; 介 (“jammed in”), strokes 6–9, each finished before the next. Its common words take the reading kai: 世界 (“the world”), 政界 (“(world of) politics”), 業界 (“business world”) and 財界 (“financial world”). Chinese reads it jiè, “boundary”, at HSK 3.

Strokes: 9
JLPT: N4
Radical: 田 (“rice field”)
On: カイ

Stroke by stroke

Vertical ㇑top leftdownwards
Horizontal-turn ㇕top leftrightwards → downwards
Vertical ㇑topdownwards
Horizontal ㇐top leftrightwards
Horizontal ㇐leftrightwards
Left-falling stroke ㇒centerdown and left
Right-falling stroke ㇏centerdown and right
Left-falling stroke ㇒centerdownwards → down and left
Vertical ㇑centerdownwards

Japanese and Chinese

The two models differ in shape, so our comparison does not claim an order; compare the numbered frames yourself (9 strokes in Japanese, 9 strokes in Chinese).

Japanese · KanjiVG · 9 strokes

Chinese · Make Me a Hanzi · 9 strokes

Trace it

Follow the numbers. Tracing help

Readings

On (Chinese-derived): カイ kai
Kun (native): none
Meanings: world; boundary
Read kai: 世界政界業界財界限界世界的
School year: third grade
Newspaper rank: 158th of 2,500 (KANJIDIC2)
Korean hanja: 계 gye
Common words: 32 in JMdict

On and kun, explained

Words with 界

Word	Reading	Meaning
世界	せかい sekai	the world; society
政界	せいかい seikai	(world of) politics; political world
業界	ぎょうかい gyoukai	business world; business circles
財界	ざいかい zaikai	financial world; business circles
限界	げんかい genkai	limit; bound
世界的	せかいてき sekaiteki	worldwide; global
産業界	さんぎょうかい sangyoukai	the industrial world
経済界	けいざいかい keizaikai	economic world; financial circles
世界一	せかいいち sekaiichi	best in the world
境界	きょうかい kyoukai	boundary; border

Most common first (JMdict).

Practice sheet

Print at 100%. Several kanji: worksheet maker.

Keep going

Same parts:

JLPT N4, in list order: