14
左
Left
ひだり (hidari)
JLPT N5
Interesting Fact
Why Cars in Japan drive on the left side of the road, even though Japan was never colonized by British? One theory traces this custom back to the samurai era, when keeping left reduced the chance of sword scabbards colliding as warriors passed each other. In samurai culture, bumping swords was a massive insult and could instantly trigger a bloody, fatal duel!
Memory Trick
"Work first, talk later." Kanji for Left (左) contains 工 (work). Kanji for Right (右) contains 口 (mouth). Since work comes before talk, the kanji with 工 is left and kanji with 口 is Right.
Readings
Onyomi: サ (sa)
Kunyomi: ひだり (hidari)
Example Words
左
ひだり (hidari)
Left
左手
ひだりて (hidarite)
Left hand
左側
ひだりがわ (hidarigawa)
Left side
左右
さゆう (sayuu)
Left and right
Example Sentence
駅は左にあります。
えき は ひだり に あります。
eki wa hidari ni arimasu
The station is on the left.