The kanji 惣 generally conveys the meaning of "all," "whole," "general," or "total." It implies a collection or totality, referring to everything within a specific group or category. It often suggests a comprehensive or encompassing nature.

・On-yomi (音読み): そう (sō) ・Kun-yomi (訓読み): なし (nashi) - This kanji doesn't have a common, independent Kun-yomi reading.

⚫︎惣菜 (そうざい) Translation: side dish; prepared food ⚫︎惣領 (そうりょう) Translation: head of a family; general; overall ⚫︎惣体 (そうたい) Translation: the whole; the entirety

The kanji 惣 is a phono-semantic compound (形声文字). The left side is the radical 心 (こころ - kokoro), meaning "heart" or "mind." The right side is the phonetic component, 公 (こう - kō), which suggests the sound "sō." The original meaning of 惣 likely connected to the idea of a "common" or "shared" heart or mind, which then broadened to mean "all" or "general."