The kanji 個 primarily means "individual," "item," or "counter for items." It represents a single, separate unit of something, a distinct entity that can be counted. It often implies a clear boundary or identity for each item being counted.

・On-yomi (音読み): コ (ko) ・Kun-yomi (訓読み): None

⚫︎ りんごを３個買いました。 Translation: I bought three apples. ⚫︎ あの店には、本がたくさんの個あります。 Translation: That store has a lot of books. ⚫︎ 一人個のパソコンを使っています。 Translation: One person uses one computer.

The kanji 個 is a phono-semantic compound (形声文字, けいせいもじ). The semantic component is イ (person, human) on the left side, which suggests the meaning of "individual" or "single." The phonetic component is 固 (ko) on the right side, which provides the sound and hints at the idea of something solid or firm, therefore "distinct" or "individual".