The kanji 厄 primarily conveys the meaning of "misfortune," "calamity," "trouble," or "disaster." It suggests something negative that befalls someone, bringing hardship or adversity. It often implies an unexpected event or circumstance that causes harm or suffering.

・On-yomi (音読み): ヤク ・Kun-yomi (訓読み): None, 厄 is usually used in compound words.

⚫︎ 厄年 (やくどし) Translation: unlucky age; a year of misfortune. ⚫︎ 厄介 (やっかい) Translation: trouble; burden; nuisance. ⚫︎ 水厄 (すいやく) Translation: water disaster; a disaster related to water (e.g., flood).

The kanji 厄 is a 形声文字 (けいせいもじ - *keisei moji*, phonetic-semantic compound character). The character combines a semantic component, the radical 卩 (sometimes seen as 㔾 or 阝 in old forms), which represents a kneeling person, with a phonetic component 㕚 (Yak, or variant forms), representing a type of "evil breath." Originally, the radical 卩 signified something bending or constrained, and when combined with the phonetic element, it implied being overcome by something negative like misfortune or illness. The kneeling figure suggests being in a difficult or submissive position, facing adversity. Over time, the form and the core meaning of this kanji, representing adversity, trouble, or bad luck, have been refined.