Future 未来
mirai2 characters12 strokes
未来 (mirai) means the future: the time still to come, often used when speaking of dreams, goals and who you will become.
Free practice sheet
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Meaning 意味
What 未来 means
The Japanese word for future, written with 2 kanji and read mirai.
未来 means the time that lies ahead. It is often used for dreams and goals, as in 未来の自分, "your future self."
When people write it in Japan. In Japan, 未来 is a popular word for kakizome, the first calligraphy of the New Year, and for goals at the start of a new school term.
Japanese children know every kanji here by 4th grade.
How to write it 書き方
Brush tips for 未来
Three things to watch
- In 未, make the upper horizontal line short and the lower one long. Reversed, it becomes a different character, 末 (end).
- As in 未, spread the left and right sweeps of 来 wide to give the character a solid, steady base.
- In both characters, run the vertical line straight down through the middle.
Stroke order
Follow the vermilion stroke, frame by frame.
Stroke order data: KanjiVG by Ulrich Apel, CC BY-SA 3.0.
How to practice 練習
Trace first, then copy
- PrintPrint both pages at actual size, on US Letter or A4. Page 1 is the model. Page 2 is the tracing sheet.
- TraceTrace the outlines with a brush pen. Or lay thin hanshi paper over the page and trace with brush and ink.
- CopySet the model beside your paper and copy it stroke by stroke. Look at the model more than at your own paper.
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