Meaning

Primary

To Roll

Alternatives

To Wind, To Wrap, To Coil

Word Type

transitive verb, godan verb

Explanation

Because the hiragana ends with an sound, you know this word is a verb. The kanji itself means scroll. But, you don't "to scroll." What do you do to scrolls, though? You roll them up, making this word "to roll."

This word can also mean to wind, like when winding thread or a watch, or to wrap when involving a rolling or coiling motion, like wrapping sushi in seaweed or wrapping a cozy scarf around your neck.

Reading

まく
  • Kyoko
    (Tokyo accent, female)
  • Kenichi
    (Tokyo accent, male)

Explanation

Since this word consists of a kanji with hiragana attached, you can bet that it will use the kun'yomi reading. You didn't learn that reading with this kanji, so here's a mnemonic to help you: The thing you are rolling up is your ma (). She's going wild again, so you throw her into a blanket and roll her up to hold her down.

Context

Context Sentences

どうしてラーメン屋さんはタオルを頭に巻いてることが多いのかな?

I wonder why ramen shop workers often wrap a towel around their heads.

肉巻きおにぎりを作りたかったんだけど、お肉がうまく巻けなかったの。

I wanted to make rice balls wrapped in meat, but I had trouble wrapping the meat around them.

こんな感じで、お寿司を海苔でクルクル巻いていきます。

This is how we make sushi - we roll it up in seaweed like this... roll, roll, roll.

二時間かけて髪を巻いたが、それでもあまりうまく巻けなかった。

I spend two hours curling my hair, but it still doesn’t curl well.

Kanji Composition