盆 Tray

Radical Combination

• 分

  Part
• 皿

  Plate

Meaning

Primary

Tray

Alternative

Ancestral Festival

Mnemonic

You put part of your food on a plate, then put that on a tray to keep it safe. This tray is an offering for the ancestral festival, where your ancestors' spirits visit you to check in and share some of that food you're offering on a tray.

Hints

Imagine preparing this tray, just before your ancestors arrive in friendly ghost form to share part of your meal with you. They only come once a year, so make sure it's a nice tray, okay?

Readings

On’yomi

ぼん

Kun’yomi

None

Nanori

None

Mnemonic

The plate you put on the tray for the ancestral festival is made of bone (ぼん). Bone china, that is. How fancy… And appropriate, considering bone china is made from actual bone.

Hints

Tap the bone china plate with your knuckle bone. Hear the pleasant clink it makes as you set it on the tray.