空～

くう～ · kuu～ · JLPT N2 · noun

empty

📭 空 = empty; its other reading そら means the empty space overhead, the sky

The long vowel 〜 stretches the sound out, like an echo fading through an empty hall. The same kanji 空 also names the sky, which is open, empty air.

空 — cave radical 穴 + 工 (phonetic)
Originally a phono-semantic compound: 穴 (cave, hole) gives the meaning of emptiness or hollow space, while 工 supplies the sound. The earliest sense was 'hole' or 'cavity,' which extended to 'empty,' 'sky,' and 'in vain.' The reading kòng (4th tone) specifically means 'free time' or 'vacancy.'

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