This site will be taken down March 31st, 2026.

This was not an easy decision to make. For the last couple years, I have been struggling to find motivation for this site and to keep up with basic maintenance and security updates. With the rise of AI and more sophisticated tools, the usefulness of sites like this is questionable and traffic has nose-dived. I just don't have it in me to keep doing this. Thank you all for 10 years of support!

Zach

Readings

Kana: レツ、さ.く、さ.ける、-ぎ.れ
Romaji: retsu, sa.ku, sa.keru, -gi.re
Kana
Romaji

Meanings

split, rend, tear

Stroke Diagram

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Kanji Info

Stroke Count:  12
Radical Number:  145
Frequency:  1041
Grade:  8
Skip Pattern:  2-6-6
Korean Reading:  ryeol
Chinese Reading:  lie3
Unicode:  88c2
JIS:  4E76

Indexes

Halpern Index: 2687
Nelson Index: 4233
New Nelson Index: 5453
Spahn Hadamitzky Index: 5e6.7
Four Corner Index: 1273.2
Guide to Remembering Index: 1930
Gakken Index: 1332
Daikanwanjiten Index: 34260
Daikanwanjiten Index and Page: 10.0213
Remembering the kanji Index: 813
Kanji Flashcards Index: 1728
Kodansha Compact Index: 1626
Kanji in Context Index: 1371
1999 Kanji Learners Index: 1727
2013 Kanji Learners Index: 2347
French Remembering the Kanji Index: 821
Remembering the Kanji 6th Index: 876
Essential Kanji Index: 1277
Kodansha Kanji Index: 3331
Roo 2001 Kanji Index: 3165
Tuttle Kanji Cards Index: 1581

Words

分裂 (ぶんれつ)
split; division; break up
破裂 (はれつ)
explosion; rupture; break off
爆裂 (ばくれつ)
exploding
引き裂く (ひきさく)
to tear up; to tear off; to split
裂く (さく)
to tear; to rip up; to cut up; to cleave; to cut open (esp. the abdomen); to forcibly separate (i.e. two lovers); to spare (time, money, etc.); to use part of something; to have a tattoo in the corner of one's eye
切り裂く (きりさく)
to cut off; to cut up; to tear to pieces
亀裂 (きれつ)
crack; crevice; fissure; chap; rift
決裂 (けつれつ)
breakdown; rupture
核分裂 (かくぶんれつ)
nuclear fission; karyokinesis (division of a cell nucleus during mitosis or meiosis)
裂ける (さける)
to split; to tear; to burst
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