Origin

This character appears to show a knife or blade (the left side) working to separate or strip away a layer from something. The right side suggests the action of peeling or scraping, with the repeated strokes evoking the motion of something coming loose or being removed. Over time, the visual idea of a sharp tool scraping away a surface came to represent the broader concept of peeling, stripping, or causing something to come off—whether that's bark from a tree, paint from a wall, or color fading from fabric. The many related native Japanese readings all capture different aspects of this single action: removing a layer, becoming bare, or having something stripped away.

AI-generated (claude-haiku-4-5), not yet reviewed. Formation type (automated guess): Pictographic or simple.