The kanji 臓 (ぞう) primarily refers to internal organs, especially those within the abdomen and chest that are essential for life. These are the vital components of the body responsible for functions like digestion, respiration, and circulation.

・On-yomi (音読み): ゾウ (zō) ・Kun-yomi (訓読み): There is no common Kun-yomi.

⚫︎内臓 Translation: Internal organs ⚫︎心臓 Translation: Heart ⚫︎臓器移植 Translation: Organ transplantation

The kanji 臓 is a 形声文字 (keisei moji), a phono-semantic compound. It combines the semantic component 月 (getsuk) or 肉 (niku), meaning "flesh" or "body" (a radical related to the body or parts of the body), with the phonetic component 蔵 (zō), which provides the sound and hints at the idea of "store" or "keep." This combination suggests the idea of "organs" or "that which is stored/held within the body." The use of 月 is a common simplification of the radical 肉, seen in many kanji related to the body.