Hi everyone!
Welcome to Everyday Kanji! In this series, we present pictures of kanji seen in various places in Japan taken by the team members at JapanesePod101.com. That’s right – kanji seen and used everyday!

In this blog and on Twitter we’ll be presenting pictures with kanji based on a theme, such as kanji seen on road signs, shop signs, restaurant menus, product packaging, and lots more! You can also see the kanji pictures everyday on Twitter if you follow us! We’ll be changing the theme of the pictures every week.

This week’s theme was kanji seen on caution and prohibition signs.

① 駐車禁止(chuusha kinshi) This means “NO PARKING”. “禁止” means “prohibited”, so you should watch out for these kanji!

駐車・chūsha = parking
–    駐・chū = stop over
–    車・sha = car
禁止・kinshi = prohibition
–  禁・kin = prohibition
–  止・shi = stop

② 投捨禁止 (nagesute kinshi) Another sign with 禁止! It means “No Littering”

投捨・nagasute = to throw out, to litter
–    投・nage = throw
–    捨・sute = discard
禁止・kinshi = prohibition
–  禁・kin = prohibition
–  止・shi = stop

③ 禁煙 (kin’en) This means “No smoking.” The 禁 of 禁止 by itself can mean “prohibited”.

禁煙・kin en = No Smoking
–    禁・kin = ban, prohibition
–    煙・en = smoke

④ 頭上注意 (zujou chuui) This means “Watch Your Head!” 注意 means “caution”, so when you see a sign with 注意, be careful!

頭上・zu jou = overhead
–    頭・zu ＝ head
–    上・jou =  above

注意・chūi = attention, caution
–    注・chū = annotation, comment
–    意・i  = feeling, thoughts

⑤ 足もと注意(ashimoto chuui) Another sign using 注意! It means “Watch your step.” 足 means “foot” or “leg”.

足もと・ashimoto = one’s step, one’s feet
–    足・ashi = foot, leg

注意・chūi = attention, caution
–    注・chū = annotation, comment
–    意・i  = feeling, thoughts

If you think you can remember them all, try testing yourself with this video on Youtube!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yamIij5ZWVs

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