The kanji 既 primarily conveys the meaning of "already," "previously," "finished," or "once." It indicates that something has taken place or is completed. It implies a state of being done or a situation that has already occurred.

・On-yomi (音読み): き (ki) ・Kun-yomi (訓読み): None, but it often appears in compound words.

⚫︎ 既婚 Translation: Married (already married). ⚫︎ 既に Translation: Already; now. ⚫︎ 既製品 Translation: Ready-made product; pre-made product.

The kanji 既 is a phono-semantic compound (形声文字). The left side is a component representing a person eating food or kneeling. The right side is "旡" (also a kanji) which represents the meaning of "already" and acts as the phonetic component, indicating the pronunciation. Therefore, the kanji originally suggested something that had been done, finished, or completed, like having already eaten. Over time, it developed to express the broader meaning of "already" or "previously."