打つ
うつ · utsu · JLPT N4 · verb-godan
to hit
🔨 utsu sounds like oots — the grunt you make as you strike
打 = hand radical 扌 + 丁, an old form of nail: a hand driving a nail, so to hit. The same kanji appears in 打者 (batter) and in typing, 打つ a key. Say u-TSU sharply; the clipped tsu lands like a blow.
打 — hand radical 扌 + nail 丁
打 combines the hand radical 扌 (action with the hand) with 丁 (originally a nail), suggesting striking or hitting with the hand. 丁 also serves as a phonetic hint in older readings. The meaning broadened from 'to strike' to a general verb for many hand-based actions, like 打电话 'make a phone call'.
ぶつ · butsu · JLPT N3 · verb-godan
to hit
🔨👊 打 = hand 扌 + nail 丁: a hand that hits a nail
Sound hook: butsu sounds like boots, and boots strike when they kick. ぶつ is a casual, spoken reading of the same verb as うつ, so you will hear it in phrases like 頭をぶつ, to bump or hit your head.
打 — hand radical 扌 + nail 丁
打 combines the hand radical 扌 (action with the hand) with 丁 (originally a nail), suggesting striking or hitting with the hand. 丁 also serves as a phonetic hint in older readings. The meaning broadened from 'to strike' to a general verb for many hand-based actions, like 打电话 'make a phone call'.