forge / train

N1
Onyomi
Kunyomi
Stroke count
17
JLPT
N1

Mnemonic

A clean, flat study card showing the kanji 鍛, meaning "forge", on a soft background.

鍛 means "forge / train". Its on'yomi タン and kun'yomi きた(える). To remember it, picture "forge" every time you see 鍛, and link that image to the reading so the shape, sound, and meaning stick together.

Stroke Order

Stroke count: 17

  1. 1Write from top to bottom.
  2. 2Write from left to right.
  3. 3Write horizontal strokes before the vertical strokes that cross them.
  4. 4Draw an outer enclosure first, then fill in what is inside.
  5. 5In symmetric shapes, write the centre before the left and right sides.
  6. 6This kanji has 17 strokes — trace them in order in the practice area below.

Step by step

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Stroke-order data: KanjiVG (CC BY-SA 3.0).

Practice Writing

Trace the faded character with your mouse or finger. Hide the outline to test yourself.

Writing Tips

  • Follow the order strictly: top-to-bottom and left-to-right. Correct order makes the shape balanced and natural.
  • Keep each stroke in one smooth motion — don't lift the pen in the middle of a stroke.
  • Close enclosing strokes cleanly so the character does not look open or broken.
  • Common mistake: drawing strokes bottom-to-top or right-to-left. Even if the result looks similar, the wrong order shows in handwriting and makes it harder to read.

Example words

Example sentences (6)

tanren wa totemo taisetsu desu.

The training is very important.

mainichi tanrenshita o tsukaimasu.

I use the plain past: did training every day.

tanrensuru no imi o shirabemashita.

I looked up the meaning of "to do training".

kore wa atarashii tanrenshinai desu.

This is a new plain negative: does not do training.

tanrenchuudesu ni tsuite hanashimashita.

We talked about the in the middle of training.

sensei ga tanrenshimasu o setsumei shimashita.

The teacher explained the polite: do training.

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