下
した · shita · JLPT N5 · noun
beneath
⬇️ Sounds like sheet-a: the sheet goes under the blanket
Shita sounds like sheet-a, and a sheet always lies under you and below the blanket. The kanji 下 is an old indicator sign: a horizontal line with a mark hanging beneath it, pointing below.
下 — horizontal line 一 + mark below
下 is an indicative character: a long horizontal line represents a reference level, and a shorter stroke placed beneath it points to the area below. The original meaning 'below, down' comes directly from this spatial diagram, and it later extended to verbs like 'descend' and 'lower'.
しも · shimo · JLPT N3 · noun
under
👇 shimo sounds like she-MOW: she mows the grass down below
下 is a pointer: a stroke marking the spot beneath a horizontal line. Shimo is the native Japanese reading for the lower part of something, as in 川下 (kawashimo, downstream). Same sound as 霜 (frost), which settles down low.
下 — horizontal line 一 + mark below
下 is an indicative character: a long horizontal line represents a reference level, and a shorter stroke placed beneath it points to the area below. The original meaning 'below, down' comes directly from this spatial diagram, and it later extended to verbs like 'descend' and 'lower'.
げ · ge · JLPT N3 · noun
below
げ sounds like GE-t down: get down means go below
The kanji began as a mark set under a long horizontal line, meaning below the line. The げ reading shows up in words like 下車 (げしゃ, getting off a vehicle) and 下水 (げすい, sewage, the water below).
下 — horizontal line 一 + mark below
下 is an indicative character: a long horizontal line represents a reference level, and a shorter stroke placed beneath it points to the area below. The original meaning 'below, down' comes directly from this spatial diagram, and it later extended to verbs like 'descend' and 'lower'.