泥

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Kanji: 泥 mud

JLPT N2 | 8 Strokes

泥

On: デイ、ナイ、デ、ニ
Kun: どろ、なず.む

Meaning: mud; mire; adhere to

Kanji Parts:

氵 water [radical form of 水]
尸 really, a corpse, but I prefer “flag”
匕 spoon or someone sitting
尼 (Buddhist) nun [hitting a corpse 尸 with a spoon 匕 during a rite or the nun sits 匕 under her flag 尸 to pray ]

Etymology:

A nun 尼 slips in water 氵 into mud.

Stroke Order:

Examples:

泥棒(どろぼう) thief; burglar; robber
泥沼(どろぬま) bog; marsh; swamp; quagmire
雲泥(うんでい)の差(さ) wide difference; a world of difference

本物ほんもののダイヤモンドと、ガラスの偽物にせものとでは輝かがやきに雲泥うんでいの差さがある。

The glitter of a real diamond is worlds apart from that of a glass fake.

本物 hon mono―the real thing; genuine

ダイヤモンド daiyamondo―diamond

ガラス garasu―glass

のno―[modifying particle which connects a modifying word and a word that is modified]

偽物 nise mono―a fake; fake item [偽 (imitation; fake; counterfeit) + 物 (thing; matter)]

~と…とでは ~to…to de wa―compared to A and B; compared to (real diamond) and (fake diamond) [used when comparing multiple items; more than two items could be nested as in AとBとC とでは….; で indicates this particular comparison between “fake” and “real” as the topic of this sentence. It would make more sense if you insert の比較 no hikaku (the comparison of) before で, theで implies “the comparison”. では is sort of like “regarding (the comparison of…)”.]

輝きkagayaki―shine; sparkle; glitter

に ni―in (shine)

雲泥の差undei no―worlds apart; a world of difference [雲 (cloud) + 泥 (dirt; mud) + のmodifying particle (of) + 差 (difference)]

があるsa ga aru―exists; there is [が (subject marker) + ある (is; exist)]

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