Meaning
振 means to shake, to wave, to swing, or to brandish. The range is wide: waving goodbye (手を振る), swinging a bat with full force, shaking a cocktail shaker. It reaches into abstract territory too — reflecting on the past (振り返る, literally "turning back in an arc") or wiring money (振込, bank transfer). Physical and figurative motion, one character.
On the left: 扌, the hand radical — a compressed form of 手. It tells you hands are involved. On the right: 辰, which provides the シン reading. On its own, 辰 is the fifth Earthly Branch — the Dragon in the Chinese zodiac, associated with sweeping arcs and powerful motion. That imagery fits 振 well.
振 has 10 strokes and is a Grade 8 kanji, taught in secondary school rather than the elementary grades. Even so, it shows up constantly in everyday life — ATM screens and banking apps (振込先), sports commentary, physics class (振動), and casual talk about body language (身振り).
Readings
On'yomi (音読み) — Chinese-derived readings
The on'yomi is シン (SHIN), from the Chinese pronunciation zhèn. It appears mainly in formal, scientific, or administrative compounds.
- 振動 (shindou) — vibration, oscillation; you'll see it on phone settings as "マナーモード（振動）"
- 振幅 (shinpuku) — amplitude; how far an oscillation swings from center
- 振興 (shinkou) — promotion, development (e.g., 産業振興, industrial promotion)
- 不振 (fushin) — slump, poor performance (e.g., 経済不振, economic downturn)
- 共振 (kyoushin) — resonance; sympathetic vibration in physics and acoustics
Kun'yomi (訓読み) — Native Japanese readings
Kun'yomi readings come from the native Japanese verb system, used when 振 stands alone or leads a compound verb.
- ふ・る (fu·ru) — to wave, to shake, to swing; also used figuratively to mean rejecting someone romantically (e.g., 彼女に振られた, "I got dumped")
- ふ・れる (fu·reru) — the intransitive form; to swing, to sway, to deviate from a norm (e.g., a compass needle drifting)
- ふ・り (fu·ri) — noun/conjunctive form; "manner of swinging," used as a prefix in compound verbs and nouns
The ふり form is especially productive. 振り返る (to look back, to reflect), 振り向く (to turn around), 振り込む (to wire money). Get comfortable with ふり early — it feeds into dozens of daily expressions.
Common Words & Compounds
振 appears across many areas of everyday Japanese. Here are key compounds grouped by theme.
Physical Motion & Science
- 振動 (shindou) — vibration, tremor
- 振幅 (shinpuku) — amplitude of a wave
- 共振 (kyoushin) — resonance, sympathetic vibration
- 一振り (hitofuri) — one swing, one wave (of a sword or conductor's baton)
Financial & Administrative
- 振込 (furikomi) — bank transfer, wire transfer; one of the most common uses of 振 in daily life
- 振込先 (furikomi saki) — transfer destination, payee account
- 振出し (furidashi) — starting point; also, to issue a check or promissory note
Movement & Direction
- 振り返る (furikaeru) — to look back; to reflect on past events
- 振り向く (furimuku) — to turn one's head, to glance back over the shoulder
Behavior & Manner
- 振舞い (furumai) — behavior, conduct; how one carries oneself
- 振る舞う (furumau) — to behave; also to treat someone to food or drink
- 身振り (miburi) — gesture, body language
- 不振 (fushin) — slump, poor showing; used in sports, business, and health contexts
- 振興 (shinkou) — promotion, invigoration of industry, culture, or tourism
Example Sentences
子どもたちは旗を振って選手たちを応援した。
Kodomotachi wa hata wo futte senshu-tachi wo ouen shita.
The children waved flags to cheer on the athletes.
銀行の振込は手数料がかかる場合がある。
Ginkou no furikomi wa tesuuryou ga kakaru baai ga aru.
Bank transfers may incur fees in some cases.
彼女は突然振り向いて、私に微笑んだ。
Kanojo wa totsuzen furimuite, watashi ni hohoenda.
She suddenly turned around and smiled at me.
このスピーカーは振動数が高く、音質がとてもいい。
Kono supiikaa wa shindousuu ga takaku, onshitsu ga totemo ii.
This speaker has a high frequency and excellent sound quality.
彼はバットを思いきり振ったが、空振りになってしまった。
Kare wa batto wo omoikiri futta ga, karaburi ni natte shimatta.
He swung the bat with all his might but missed completely.
１年を振り返ると、本当にたくさんのことを学んだと感じる。
Ichinnen wo furikaeru to, hontou ni takusan no koto wo mananda to kanjiru.
Looking back on the year, I feel that I truly learned a great deal.
地域の観光振興のために、新しいイベントが企画された。
Chiiki no kankou shinkou no tame ni, atarashii ibento ga kikaku sareta.
A new event was planned to promote tourism in the local area.
その選手はシーズン中不振が続き、ファンを心配させた。
Sono senshu wa shiizun-juu fushin ga tsuzuki, fan wo shinpai saseta.
That player continued to slump throughout the season, worrying the fans.
彼の身振り手振りで、言葉がなくても気持ちが伝わった。
Kare no miburi teburi de, kotoba ga nakutemo kimochi ga tsutawatta.
His gestures conveyed his feelings even without words.
Memory Tip
Picture someone gripping a conductor's baton and sweeping it through a wide arc — the hand (扌) driving the motion. That's 振. The right side, 辰, looks like a figure mid-swing, arms outstretched. For the on'yomi SHIN, think of a pendulum: steady, swinging, vibrating. For FURU, anchor it to 手を振る ("to wave one's hand") — the first gesture you make saying goodbye. One more pattern worth knowing: whenever 扌 appears on the left of a kanji, hands are involved. 振 is one of the clearest examples, turning up everywhere from bank transfers to baseball to body language.