Meaning
葬 means burial, funeral, and the act of laying the dead to rest. It covers traditional Buddhist funeral ceremonies, cremation paperwork, and formal condolence notices. The character also carries figurative weight: something can be 葬られる — buried, suppressed, or erased from public memory.
The structure tells its own story. At the center sits 死 (death), flanked above and below by 艸 (grass). This isn't decoration. Across ancient East Asia, burial often meant placing the body on the earth and covering it with grass, leaves, and soil. The character depicts exactly that: a lifeless body (死) laid beneath vegetation (艸), returning to the ground.
At 13 strokes, 葬 belongs to Japan's Jōyō kanji (常用漢字) list — the standard set for general literacy — but is taught at high school level rather than elementary school. That placement reflects its formal domain. The radical is 艸 (grass, kusa kanmuri).
Day-to-day, 葬 appears in funeral announcements, legal documents, and obituaries. Journalism and fiction draw on its figurative side just as often: a plan, a career, or an inconvenient truth can all be 葬られる — killed off and buried for good.
Readings
On'yomi (音読み) — Chinese-derived readings
The sole on'yomi is ソウ (sou), used in virtually all compound words (熟語, jukugo). ソウ belongs to formal written registers. You won't hear it in everyday conversation, but it appears constantly in news coverage of funerals, official announcements, and legal documents concerning burial.
- 葬儀 (sougi) — funeral ceremony; the formal rite, often including religious elements
- 葬式 (soushiki) — funeral; the most common everyday term
- 葬送 (sousou) — funeral procession; the ceremonial sending-off of the deceased
- 葬列 (souretsu) — funeral procession; the line of mourners accompanying the coffin
- 国葬 (kokusou) — state funeral; a nationally organized ceremony for a prominent public figure
Kun'yomi (訓読み) — Native Japanese readings
The kun'yomi is ほうむ・る (houmu-ru), a native Japanese verb meaning 'to bury,' 'to inter,' or 'to consign to oblivion.' It works on two levels. Literally, it describes the physical act of burying a person after death. Figuratively — equally common in literature and journalism — it means suppressing something: a scandal, a secret, a proposal, or a person's reputation. That dual meaning gives ほうむる a heavy, almost ominous tone wherever it appears.
- 葬る (houmuru) — to bury, to inter, to send into oblivion
- 葬り去る (houmuri saru) — to bury away completely, to consign utterly to oblivion
- 秘密を葬る (himitsu wo houmuru) — to bury a secret, to suppress the truth
Common Words & Compounds
Most 葬 compounds cluster around three areas: funeral rites, methods of burial, and administrative terms.
Funeral Ceremonies and Rites:
- 葬儀 (sougi) — funeral ceremony; the complete formal rite, often including religious elements
- 葬式 (soushiki) — funeral; the most commonly used everyday word for the event
- 葬送 (sousou) — the ceremonial sending-off of the dead; also appears in music (葬送曲, a funeral march)
- 葬列 (souretsu) — funeral procession; the ordered line of mourners and the coffin
- 国葬 (kokusou) — state funeral; held at national expense for heads of state or distinguished figures
Methods of Burial:
- 火葬 (kasou) — cremation; over 99% of Japanese funerals use this method today
- 土葬 (dosou) — earth burial; placing the body directly in the ground, now rare in Japan
- 水葬 (suisou) — burial at sea; historically used for sailors lost at sea
- 鳥葬 (chousou) — sky burial; a Tibetan funeral tradition in which the body is exposed to birds of prey
- 埋葬 (maisou) — burial, interment; the formal legal and religious act of placing the deceased in the ground or a tomb
Venues, Administration, and Expressions:
- 葬儀社 (sougisha) — funeral home; the company that organizes and manages funeral services
- 葬儀場 (sougijou) — funeral hall; the venue where ceremonies are conducted
- 合葬 (gousou) — joint burial; interring multiple people together in a shared grave or urn
Example Sentences
祖父の葬式は先週行われました。
Sofu no soushiki wa senshuu okonawaremashita.
My grandfather's funeral was held last week.
日本では火葬が一般的です。
Nihon de wa kasou ga ippanteki desu.
Cremation is the common practice in Japan.
葬儀は厳粛な雰囲気の中で行われた。
Sougi wa genshuku na fun'iki no naka de okonawareta.
The funeral ceremony was conducted in a solemn atmosphere.
彼は先祖の土地に埋葬されることを望んでいた。
Kare wa senzo no tochi ni maisou sareru koto wo nozonde ita.
He wished to be buried in the land of his ancestors.
国葬は国家が費用を負担して行う葬儀だ。
Kokusou wa kokka ga hiyou wo futan shite okonau sougi da.
A state funeral is a funeral ceremony conducted at national expense.
その秘密は永遠に葬られた。
Sono himitsu wa eien ni houmurareta.
That secret was buried forever.
葬儀社に連絡して、手続きを進めました。
Sougisha ni renraku shite, tetsuzuki wo susumemashita.
I contacted the funeral home and proceeded with the necessary arrangements.
葬送曲が静かに流れる中、参列者たちは黙礼した。
Sousoukyoku ga shizuka ni nagareru naka, sanretsushatachi wa mokurei shita.
As the funeral march played softly, the attendees bowed their heads in silent tribute.
その計画は会議で葬られてしまった。
Sono keikaku wa kaigi de houmurarete shimatta.
The plan was buried (killed off) in the meeting.
Memory Tip
Picture grass (艸) growing silently over a grave. Inside the character, death (死) is sandwiched between layers of vegetation — a body laid in the earth, with wild grass reclaiming the mound above. Before carved tombstones, a quiet rise of earth covered in grass was the only marker of where someone lay.
Three words lock it in: 'Grass covers death — burial.' Each word maps to a visual piece of 葬, making this one of the more memorable N1 characters to visualize.