Meaning
肢 means limb or extremity — the arms and legs of the human body, or any branching appendage of a living creature. In medical Japanese, it appears constantly in anatomical terminology where precise body descriptions matter.
The character has two parts. Left: 月 (にくづき, nikuzuki), a modified form of 肉 meaning "flesh" or "body." This radical marks body-related kanji — it also appears in 腕 (arm), 脚 (leg), and 胸 (chest). Right: 支 (シ, shi), meaning "branch" or "prop." A branch of the body — that is what a limb is.
Eight strokes. Classified as a high school (高校) kanji on Japan's Joyo list, it belongs mainly to formal, medical, and academic writing. JLPT places it at N1.
One everyday word makes 肢 worth knowing beyond anatomy: 選択肢 (せんたくし, sentakushi), meaning "option" or "choice." A decision point fans out like branches on a tree — you stand at the fork and pick one path. That mental image is baked into the kanji itself.
Readings
On'yomi (音読み) — Chinese-derived readings
肢 has one reading: シ (shi). Used in every compound, it comes from Middle Chinese and carries the formal, clinical register of Sino-Japanese vocabulary — medical reports, legal documents, academic texts rather than casual speech.
Key compounds:
- 四肢 (shishi) — the four limbs; arms and legs as a set
- 上肢 (jōshi) — upper limbs; the arms
- 下肢 (kashi) — lower limbs; the legs
- 選択肢 (sentakushi) — option; choice; alternative
- 義肢 (gishi) — prosthetic limb
Kun'yomi (訓読み) — Native Japanese readings
No standard kun'yomi exists in modern Japanese. Classical texts occasionally use あし (ashi), but 足 and 脚 long replaced it. For N1 study, treat 肢 as a compound-only kanji with one reading: シ.
Common Words & Compounds
Most 肢 compounds appear in medical, anatomical, or welfare contexts. These cover the range you'll encounter in N1 reading passages on health topics.
Anatomical and Medical Terms:
- 四肢 (shishi) — the four limbs; arms and legs as a set
- 上肢 (jōshi) — upper limbs; arms from shoulder to fingertip
- 下肢 (kashi) — lower limbs; legs from hip to toe
- 前肢 (zenshi) — forelimbs; front legs of an animal
- 後肢 (kōshi) — hind limbs; back legs of an animal
- 肢体 (shitai) — limbs and body; the physical body as a whole
- 義肢 (gishi) — prosthetic limb; artificial replacement for a lost extremity
- 肢節 (shisetsu) — joints of the limbs; segmented parts of an appendage
General and Everyday Terms:
- 選択肢 (sentakushi) — option; choice; alternative — the 肢 word you'll see most in daily Japanese
- 肢体不自由 (shitai fujiyū) — physical disability affecting the limbs; a formal term in welfare and education
選択肢 is what you'll actually encounter at N1 — in exam questions, news commentary, business discussions. The anatomical terms matter for medical and welfare passages.
Example Sentences
この問題には三つの選択肢があります。
Kono mondai ni wa mittsu no sentakushi ga arimasu.
This problem has three choices.
どの選択肢を選んでも、リスクがある。
Dono sentakushi wo erande mo, risuku ga aru.
Whichever option you choose, there is risk involved.
彼女は四肢を使ってプールを泳いだ。
Kanojo wa shishi wo tsukatte pūru wo oyoida.
She swam across the pool using all four limbs.
事故で下肢に重傷を負った。
Jiko de kashi ni jūshō wo otta.
He suffered serious injuries to his lower limbs in the accident.
手術の後、上肢のリハビリを始めた。
Shujutsu no ato, jōshi no rihabiri wo hajimeta.
After the surgery, she began rehabilitation for her upper limbs.
義肢の技術は近年、大きく進歩した。
Gishi no gijutsu wa kinnen, ōkiku shinpo shita.
Prosthetic limb technology has advanced greatly in recent years.
猫の前肢は器用に動く。
Neko no zenshi wa kiyō ni ugoku.
A cat's front limbs move with remarkable dexterity.
肢体不自由のある子どもたちを支援するNPOがある。
Shitai fujiyū no aru kodomotachi wo shien suru NPO ga aru.
There is an NPO that supports children with physical disabilities affecting their limbs.
医者は患者の四肢の動きを確認した。
Isha wa kanja no shishi no ugoki wo kakunin shita.
The doctor checked the movement of the patient's four limbs.
Memory Tip
Picture the human body as a tree trunk. Arms and legs branch outward from the center — each one is a 肢. The character shows this directly: 月 (flesh/body) on the left, 支 (branch) on the right.
The same logic explains 選択肢. Face a decision and the path splits into branches. You choose one. That fork in the road is the kanji.