kana

[ kah-nuh; Japanese kah-nah ]

noun
  1. a Japanese syllabic script consisting of 71 symbols and having two written varieties.

Origin of kana

1
1720–30; <Japanese; earlier kanna,kari-na makeshift names (i.e., characters) as opposed to ma-na true characters, i.e., kanji

Words Nearby kana

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024

How to use kana in a sentence

  • Soon they came to a swamp, and kana′tĭ told them there was something dangerous there and they must keep away from it.

    Myths of the Cherokee | James Mooney
  • Whenever kana′tĭ went into the mountains he always brought back a fat buck or doe, or maybe a couple of turkeys.

    Myths of the Cherokee | James Mooney
  • At once there ran out a buck, which kana′tĭ shot, and then lifting it upon his back he started for home again.

    Myths of the Cherokee | James Mooney
  • A few days afterward kana′tĭ took a bow and some feathers in his hand and started off toward the west.

    Myths of the Cherokee | James Mooney
  • kana′tĭ stood looking on until he thought they had been punished enough, when he knocked off the vermin and made the boys a talk.

    Myths of the Cherokee | James Mooney

British Dictionary definitions for kana

kana

/ (ˈkɑːnə) /


noun
  1. the Japanese syllabary, which consists of two written varieties: See hiragana, katakana

Origin of kana

1
C18: from Japanese, literally: borrowed or provisional letters; compare kanji, which are regarded as real letters

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