Some kanji has more than one onyomi and kunyomi. How will we know which kunyomi/onyomi to use or… - Feed Post by kprovost7314

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  fuonk

  If you use the wrong yomi, you will usually get something which is not a word of the Japanese language. For each word, you have to learn how it is pronounced as well as how it is spelled.
  This is true in English as well: if you see the combination "ei" in a word, how do you know whether to pronounce it as in "eight", as in "their", as in "height", as in "seize" or as in "being"? The letters by themselves are not a complete guide to pronunciation in English, but if you choose the wrong pronunciation, you will usually get something which is not a word.

  December 14, 2015 at 12:50pm
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  fuonk

  That having been said, there are some general patterns (but nothing one could really call a rule). A word with only one kanji usually uses a kunyomi, although there are exceptions. Words with two or more kanji in a row usually use onyomi, although there are also exceptions. When there is more than one onyomi, one onyomi may be more closely related to one meaning, and another onyomi to a slightly different meaning.
  There are rare cases in which more than one onyomi is correct; for example, 工場 can be pronounced both こうじょう and こうば.

  December 14, 2015 at 12:57pm