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道Nihongo Path
駒

駒·pony, horse, colt

On-yomi
none
Kun-yomi
こま

By Nihongo PathUpdated

Stroke order

Write it in this order; the numbers mark where each stroke starts.

Common words

WordReadingMeaning
駒こまpiece (in shogi, chess, etc.)
持ち駒もちごまpieces in hand, resources up one's sleeve
手駒てごまpieces at one's disposal
駒鳥こまどりJapanese robin

Example sentences

  1. 将棋の駒を並べた。

    しょうぎのこまをならべた。

    I set out the shogi pieces.

  2. 彼は交渉の持ち駒が多い。

    かれはこうしょうのもちごまがおおい。

    He has plenty of cards to play in the negotiation.

Similar-looking kanji

Do not confuse these on the exam.

Common mistakes

  • In everyday Japanese 駒 means a game piece, not a pony.
  • 持ち駒 is もちごま with rendaku, and is used figuratively of people or options you can deploy.

Memory aid

Picture it

Horse 馬 with 句: a little horse — and because the horse-shaped shogi pieces were 駒, any board-game piece became a 駒.

Quick check

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What does the kanji 駒 mean?