Alternative mnemonics 👀

[tip]

@jeff8v7 Here is a place to put all of your mnemonics in one post. I will try to make it a wiki so you can put them on the OP or just reply.

先ず alternate mnemonic

Anyone have an alternate mnemonic for 先ず？ I’ll try a silly one… First of all, I’ll share my experience of trying to remember this. To begin with, I look at the kanji and try to remember if it’s previous or past. For some reason, these two kanji were previously wired wrong in my brain, so I guess it means previous. So, to start with, I try to navigate this mental maze. Firstly, I wonder what the ず means. I remember going to a previous zoo when I was a kid, and there was even a maze of people w…

一文字（いちもんじ）mnemonic

I really hate drawing straight lines. We had to do it in school drawing class, and I always got dinged because my lines weren’t perfectly straight (I prefer curves). Every time they told us to draw straight lines, I let out one big MOAN (ichi moan). Not just any MOAN, the biggest MOAN, the ICHI ban MOAN, or ICHI-MOAN for short. Likewise, I really hate remembering this Kanji. Every time I get is wrong, I let out one huge ICHI MOAN. I’ve slightly mistyped it so many times that I let out a huge M…

米 alternate mnemonic

I’m traveling and really missing Japanese food. I’m craving good RICE, because RICE in America is terrible, hard and dry like something you’d feed to a horse (hear the horse bay-y-y-y). On the way home, I stop in San Francisco. I’m at Fisherman’s Warf, at a restaurant overlooking SF BAY. It’s a theme restaurant, so everything is “BAY” this 'n that. Bay shrimp, Bay cocktails, Bay Rice. I smell the rice, look at the bay, taste it. It’s delicious, just like the rice in Tokyo Bay! I love BAY rice!

行き（ゆき ）alternate mnemonic

行き（ゆき ）train direction The KEY to GOING somewhere in Tokyo, is checking the TRAIN DIRECTION before you board. It’s really easy to get on the right train but going the wrong direction. Then you have to stop, get off, walk up the stairs, over the tracks, down the stairs and get back on the other TRAIN DIRECTION. It’s hugely time consuming, and really cold in the winter too! Reading… Imagine yourself getting off the train that’s going the wrong direction. It’s winter, snowing (ゆき) and cold. Cli…

名字（みょうじ）alternate mnemonic

名字（みょうじ）surname Reading… Remember the Karate Kid? Mr. MIYOUJI always made Daniel call him by his SURNAME. (His first name was “Mister” which is kind of funny.) One time Daniel said “Hey Mister, why am I washing your car so much? It’s not even dirty.” Mr MIYOUJI got angry, but calmly said "Mr. MIYOUJI, Mr. MIYOUJI, MR. MIYOUJI! You can only use my SURNAME!’ Then Daniel had to paint the fence for 3 hours and wash the car again. Poor Daniel. Why didn’t he use Mr MIYOUJI’s SURNAME? (It’s true tha…

作用（さよう）ACTION alternate mnemonic

Meaning… This word looks like you’re making a check list with an old quill pen. You’re MAKING your list of TASKS. Once you MAKE a TASK, it’s time for ACTION! Without ACTION, there is no need to MAKE a TASK, for there would be no EFFECT. Reading… Once you MAKE a TASK, it’s time for ACTION. Put down that check list, say SAYO(u)nara, and go take ACTION. Have an EFFECT on the world.

科（か）COURSE alternate mnemonic

You’re taking a COURSE on making eco-fuel from GRAIN. It’s quite the SCIENCE. You’re learning how to turn GRAIN into liquid, so you can LADLE it into your CAR, and stop using fossil fuels. You’re a newbie, so your fuel is a bit unstable, which is why you have to use a LADLE instead of a gas pump. See yourself LADLing that GRAIN into your KAr. Now your exhaust smells like popcorn! Aren’t you glad you took this COURSE at the SCIENCE DEPARTMENT.

活（かつ）LIVELY alternate mnemonic

Nothing wakes you up like a dozen CATS (かつ) licking your face. It’s like a TSUNAMI of TOUNGUEs, whipping in and out of their furry little mouths. Those little CATS are so LIVELY, licking and purring and slobbering on you. In fact, it’s so disgusting that you really want to get up and get going. Suddenly, you feel LIVELY too!

[plantron]

Alternative mnemonic for せい:

[Kurei_0]

Good idea! If I may suggest, three tables would be a good idea (radical, kanji and vocabulary), maybe ordered per level to make it easy to find stuff.

I second the idea to make this into a wiki.

P.S. I have a bunch of ehm…PG-13 mnemonics (they work well too ), so we should probably put a ban on those, maybe make it a rule?

[tip]

jeff8v7 wound up making his own consolidated post.

[jeff8v7]

Thanks! Great idea. If it’s a wiki, everyone can participate. I was just thinking of myself

Before I saw this, I made a consolidated post for my own. I sorted by level, like so…

J's alternate mnemonics, Level 1-10

I love the WaniKani mnemonics. But when they don’t stick in my brain, I make up my own. Here’s my growing list. Hope you find a few helpful. Enjoy Click on a word to see the mnemonic… Level 1

Koichi（こう）CO-founder #1

Koichi is used everywhere for KOU (こう), but if you’re a foreigner like me, it may be hard to remember his name at first. Just remember that Koichi is CO(こう)-founder #1 (いち) of tofugu, emphasis on the CO (こう) because there are others (apparently).

Jourm (じょう) → Grand…

I’ll keep an eye on your wiki too, and add mine to it as well…

[Kurei_0]

Ok, I’m slightly confused of where to add them now. I like jeff’s formatting better, this here takes too much space. But that one isn’t a wiki (yet).
I’ll just add some random ones to get this started:

Level 10

習 しゅう Learn

Meaning

All little birds start as white, with pure white feathers. Then they have to become adult and LEARN how to fly! There are courses for birds available so they can learn. And birds are racist too…they don’t allow humans in their courses, they don’t want us to LEARN their secrets. I know, I have tried!
-Icarus, Avium historia

Reading

But those fools don’t know that you are friends with Hermes. You have winged SHOEs (しゅう) that allow you to fly. You don’t really need those courses after all!

---

Level 11

味 み Flavor

Meaning

Imagine a mom putting the food in a kid’s Mouth, Airplane style. Embarrassing, anyway, the kid doesn’t know. He only cares about the Flavor.

Reading

Same as WK. Meat is meat after all.

---

Level 6

新 New しん

Meaning

You stand with an axe on a tree.
Let’s forget why we’re cutting it down. The point is wee need to plant a NEW tree where it was. You can’t just cut down a tree…

Reading

Ah, now you remember why you’re cutting down the old tree. It had walked on your feet and hurt your SHIN . Imagine the weight of a tree on your foot. So it’s just… justice. A new tree will be there.
Hint: the tree is an old Treebeard (LOTR)

[jeff8v7]

I might consider making mine a wiki… any pointers or examples on how to do this?

[UInt2048]

Become a Member trust level, or have a Regular do it. You could see if @tip can help…

[jeff8v7]

Ok… I’ll wait until I’m not a newbie Meanwhile, I’ll just maintain my little list. Thanks!

[UInt2048]

Great, you’re a Member now. Feel free to make it a wiki.

[dominik_mozny]

Alternative mnemonic for rocket radical (level 31):
Inside treasure chest with a lid is something what must be kept private, it is a head of a rocket.

[dominik_mozny]

Alternative mnemonics for Reverse kanji (level 28):

Meaning:
There is a slide in the mountains. You are going down this slide on your horned scooter reversely until you hit the ground down there.

Reading:
Down there under the slide it wasn’t ground but it was Gak and now you are completely covered in Gak because you went reversely and you didn’t see it so you couldn’t avoid it. If you don’t know what Gak is, check out this Gak commercial.

[dominik_mozny]

Alternative mnemonic for Go Beyond (level 30):

Meaning:
If you are a drunkard just pick up the stick on the ground (so you have a support for your uncertain walking) and run to go beyond your drunkenness, to become better person.

[ChaosControl]

Does anyone have an alternate mnemonic for いと (thread)?

I keep remembering “eat” as いつ and getting it wrong. I’m usually pretty good at creating my own, but nothing’s coming to me right now.

[Letho]

北ほく

All the 白人はくじん come from the 北ほく. No exceptions

For those who like to use other kanji in their mnemonics =p

[zioming]

I’m not really sure what to think about the fact that the kanji for husband 夫 is like the one for jet 未 (jet fighter pilot), but without that little bit between it’s legs… Plus it’s the basis for the kanji for fault 失 (being at fault).

[zioming]

I remember 北西 hokusei since it kinda sound like the first part of hokus-pokus

[Jonapedia]

@zioming

Plus it’s the basis for the kanji for fault 失 (being at fault).

Actually it isn’t: they’re not related. If you look at the Oracle Bone Script forms, you’ll see that 失 is a hand + the path of an object falling out of the hand, while 夫 is a man (大) with a topknot. But whatever you notice and remember is good as long as it doesn’t confuse you!

@ChaosControl

Does anyone have an alternate mnemonic for いと (thread)?

Oh wow, this is really ancient at this point. I hope you found something else in the meantime…

If you haven’t though… this doesn’t help you remember it in kana, but in rōmaji (provided you’re able to visualise things): imagine
i
t
o
vertically like that, and see the O flattened and connected to a needle as i and t descend vertically towards and through it. ‘Ito’ is therefore the thread going through the eye (O) of the needle. Thus it’s いと.

[ChaosControl]

Thanks for the reply! I eventually just brute forced it in the end. But visualising it that way, is actually really helpful!

[zioming]

To run hashiru through the border.