Meaning
管 has two core meanings: a physical pipe or tube, and the more abstract concept of managing or administering. These aren't as unrelated as they look — a pipe controls the flow of something, and a manager controls the flow of people, information, or resources. Physical containment and functional control share the same underlying logic.
Structurally, 管 combines 竹 (bamboo) on top with 官 (official, government) below. Bamboo was the primary material for pipes and tubes across ancient East Asia — water conduits, musical instruments, writing implements. The 官 element contributes authority and governance. Together: a bamboo conduit under official oversight, something that channels, directs, and keeps things in order. 管 has 14 strokes and is taught in grade 4 of Japanese elementary school, making it a foundational character you'll encounter constantly in adult reading material.
It appears in medical terminology (blood vessels, trachea), workplace vocabulary (management, administration), and music (wind instruments) — broad enough coverage to earn its place on the N2 list.
Readings
On'yomi (音読み) — Chinese-derived readings
The on'yomi is カン, and it dominates. It appears across nearly all compound words, especially in formal and written contexts dealing with administration, control, or tube-shaped objects.
- 管理 (kanri) — management, administration. Know this one first. It shows up on property management signs, in job titles like 管理職 (managerial position), and in any conversation about who is responsible for what.
- 管轄 (kankatsu) — jurisdiction, control. Used in legal and governmental contexts to describe the scope of an authority's reach.
- 血管 (kekkan) — blood vessel. 血 (blood) + 管 (tube): the body's own piping system.
- 気管 (kikan) — windpipe, trachea. The tube that carries air to your lungs.
- 保管 (hokan) — storage, custody, safekeeping. Here 管 carries the sense of maintaining control over something entrusted to you.
Kun'yomi (訓読み) — Native Japanese readings
Two kun'yomi: くだ and つかさど.る. Both are less frequent in everyday modern text, but each reveals a distinct layer of the kanji's meaning.
- 管 (kuda) — pipe, tube. The standalone physical reading. 土管 (dokan), a large earthenware drainage pipe, is the classic example — familiar from construction sites and old manga alike.
- 管を巻く (kuda wo maku) — to ramble on, to grumble. An idiomatic phrase: air droning endlessly through a tube, turned into a metaphor for someone who won't stop complaining.
- 管る (tsukasadoru) — to administer, to be in charge of. Formal and literary; it carries clear weight: official authority over a defined domain.
Common Words & Compounds
管 threads through vocabulary across several fields. Here are the key compounds, grouped by theme.
Management & Administration:
- 管理 (kanri) — management, administration
- 管理人 (kanrinin) — manager, superintendent, caretaker
- 管理職 (kanrishoku) — managerial position
- 主管 (shukan) — person in charge, supervisor
- 所管 (shokan) — jurisdiction, area of responsibility
- 管制 (kansei) — control, regulation (e.g., air traffic control: 航空管制)
Body & Medicine:
- 血管 (kekkan) — blood vessel
- 気管 (kikan) — trachea, windpipe
- 気管支 (kikanshi) — bronchial tubes
- 尿管 (nyoukan) — ureter
Physical Pipes & Tubes:
- 水管 (suikan) — water pipe
- 鉄管 (tekkan) — iron pipe
- 土管 (dokan) — earthenware pipe, drain pipe
Music:
- 管楽器 (kangakki) — wind instrument
- 管弦楽 (kangengaku) — orchestral music (lit. wind and string music)
- 管弦楽団 (kangengakudan) — orchestra
Example Sentences
この建物の管理人は親切な人です。
Kono tatemono no kanrinin wa shinsetsu na hito desu.
The superintendent of this building is a kind person.
水道管が破裂して、水が溢れています。
Suidoukan ga haretsu shite, mizu ga afurete imasu.
The water pipe has burst and water is overflowing.
彼女は会社の予算を管理しています。
Kanojo wa kaisha no yosan wo kanri shite imasu.
She manages the company's budget.
気管支炎で病院に行きました。
Kikanshien de byouin ni ikimashita.
I went to the hospital with bronchitis.
このコンサートホールでは管弦楽団が毎週演奏します。
Kono konsaato hooru de wa kangengakudan ga maishuu ensou shimasu.
An orchestra performs at this concert hall every week.
航空管制の仕事は非常に責任が重い。
Koukuu kansei no shigoto wa hijou ni sekinin ga omoi.
The job of air traffic control carries very heavy responsibility.
社員の健康を管理するのは会社の義務です。
Shain no kenkou wo kanri suru no wa kaisha no gimu desu.
It is the company's duty to manage employees' health.
彼は財産の保管を弁護士に任せた。
Kare wa zaisan no hokan wo bengoshi ni makaseta.
He entrusted the custody of his assets to a lawyer.
血管の健康を保つために、毎日運動することが大切です。
Kekkan no kenkou wo tamotsu tame ni, mainichi undou suru koto ga taisetsu desu.
It is important to exercise every day in order to maintain the health of your blood vessels.
Memory Tip
Picture a bamboo official. At the top, 竹 — bamboo. At the bottom, 官 — a government figure with authority. Put them together: an official standing beside a bamboo pipe, directing where the water flows and making sure nothing runs off course. One image, both meanings — the physical tube and the authority that controls it.
For Vietnamese learners, the Hán-Việt reading is QUẢN — the same root as quản lý (management) and quản trị (administration). Words already familiar from Vietnamese map directly onto this kanji.